Diving Into The Unknown
by WakaLordFalcon
Summary: {Sequel to Separation!} Clementine is crippled after Carver burned down the cabin with her in it, but he paid for his deed when Kenny blew his brains out. That was just the beginning… What the group didn't expect was for Tavia to find them and take them back to Howe's anyway. What new friends will the group encounter and what problems will they face now? (Co-written with Rebloxic)
1. Notes

***CHANGE: Account being left activated so my popular fics will still be accessible for reading purposes :) You're welcome. Just a few changes have been made:**

- ALL answers to reviews deleted (Sorry...)

-ALL chapters compressed into one :)

**Enjoy this story - much love from WakaLordFalcon (previously Bubbles2k100)**


	2. Full Works

**Chapter 1:**

* * *

><p>Clementine didn't know the cabin group very well but she trusted them with her life.<p>

Sarah seemed to always wanna be around her and looked up to the younger girl like she was her hero. Clementine didn't understand why, considering she had been told not to communicate with the fifteen year old with red rimmed glasses...

Carlos had been so mean to Clementine when they first met. He gave her the cold shoulder and told her to stay away from his daughter. She did as he asked but slowly, they started to relax around each other and were now very close. He had told her at the ski lodge that she would need help walking around, even with the cane, but that she would eventually be able to walk without it. He was going to tell her something else but then Sarah interrupted and he forgot what he was going to say.

Alvin was a big softy. He wouldn't hurt a fly unless the fly was attacking his wife. Rebecca was his whole world and would do anything to keep her safe.

Alvin was also her whole world but she was a little less 'soft' than him. She had been very ignorant towards the little girl when they first met but now both girls looked out for each other.

Molly was one of Clementine's old group members, even though she wasn't really 'part of the group'. She arrived, helped her group into Crawford and then left. Even though they didn't really know each other well, they were both glad to see each other in 'okay' health (If 'okay' means almost bleeding out).

Nick always tried to do what was right, even if in the end, it turned out to be the worst choice possible. Everything he did was to try and help but somehow he always screwed up.

Luke had saved Clementine's life. When Carver burnt the cabin to the ground, Luke tried to help her even though Carver had hurt him too. His injury was the only reason he dropped her and the only reason she was a cripple now.

It was Carver's fault, but he was finally dead.

That mad man's life was ended by an old friend of hers. Kenny blew the psycho's brains out when he threatened to kill her and she owed the bearded man her life for that.

His girlfriend Sarita was so kind and caring even though that kind of behaviour wasn't praised in the world the way it was two years ago, but Clementine didn't know a lot about her.

They would have to get to know each other more when they got to Howe's; their new 'home'.

Everyone had departed from the ski lodge about ten minutes ago.

Tavia led the way while Wyatt stuck by her side, Bonnie was making sure she kept Luke, Nick, Alvin, Carlos, Sarah, Molly, Sarita and Kenny in line. Shel kept an eye on Rebecca, Russell made sure no one went astray from behind Shel and Rebecca, and Vince and Clementine were behind those two.

Every few minutes, Luke would turn his head to look past Shel and Russell and make sure Clementine was okay. She smiled at him to get him to look away but if she was honest, she wasn't okay.

She was in pain and she was tired.

Her leg was throbbing and using the cane was more of a challenge than she had hoped for. Beads of sweat were forming above her brow as she continued to stumble forward, trying to keep up with the rest of the group.

She was fine until they reached the bottom of the hill. Now, she was slowing down as each minute passed.

"You alright?" Vince asked.

She nodded her head, but the Asian man could see straight through her lie. "We're almost at the truck; it's only another five minutes away." He assured her.

She was glad she didn't have to walk much further but she was also dreading the next five minutes. She placed the cane down and leaned against it but she put more pressure on her leg than she should have and gasped in pain, stopping dead in her tracks.

Vince put his hand on her shoulder and cleared his throat. "Tavia!" he called.

The obese woman turned around to look at her follower.

"She's hurt. Can Carlos take a look at it? He's a doctor…" he asked as every eye looked at the girl trembling on the spot.

Tavia looked angry but she nodded her head. "You have two minutes. Everyone else, follow me! Vince, Carlos and the girl can catch up when they're done here!" she ordered as everyone started walking again.

Nick and Luke turned to look at the girl one last time before continuing the trek.

"Tavia is gonna make her work her ass ff you know?" Nick asked angrily.

Luke nodded his head. "We have to escape again; we can't be brought down by this 'community'." He said.

Sarah was slightly anxious when her father was left behind but Molly was there to help out. "It's okay, Sarah. He'll be back in a minute." She told the girl.

Sarah used to fear that she would lose her father and be completely alone in the world of the undead but now she had Molly; a second mother, almost. "If…If something happened to my dad, would you… would you still be here for me?" she asked the blonde haired young woman.

Molly was taken aback by the question. She didn't like sticking with people but Sarah was different. Sarah was like her second self. She was scared but was making it through the fear; still moving forward.

Molly had outgrown her fearful anxiety attacks but deep down she still feared a lot of things. Having Sarah around made her realise that she wasn't alone and that it was good to have someone around.

"Yeah, Sarah. Of course I'd still be here for you! We're a team now!" Molly said, smiling down at the child who was beaming up at her.

"Thanks, Molly!" she exclaimed as they continued marching ahead.

"Clem, what did you do?" Carlos asked as he inspected her leg.

"I took a step…" she said through gritted teeth.

"I think you may have applied too much pressure; maybe opened the wound." He said as he watched fresh blood seep through the shirt tied to her knee.

"Is that bad?" she asked, fear evident in her voice.

"You shouldn't walk on it anymore, Clementine." He said standing up.

"Aren't you going to take the bandage off to check?" Vince asked from where he stood behind Clementine.

"I can't with my hands tied. Besides then the blood will run freely and she could pass out!" Carlos explained as he stood up.

"I'm right here, you know?!" Clementine exclaimed as her eyes widened at Carlos's words.

Vince scratched the back of his neck before sighing and scooping the girl up into his arms. "I'm not letting Tavia blame me for us being late to the truck. Come on…" he said, waiting for Carlos to start walking.

"Thanks…" Clementine mumbled as she looked at her leg sadly.

"A frown really doesn't suit you, kid." Vince said when he looked down at her in his arms.

She looked up at him, locking her amber eyes with his brown ones. "I thought kids were always smiling and laughing!" he said enthusiastically.

"I'm not a kid…" she said. "Yeah you are." He said back.

"No. I'm. Not." She stated.

"Yes. You. Are." He stated back.

A small smile formed on her face. "At least I'm not old like you…" she mumbled.

Vince chuckled quietly as they rest of the group came into view up ahead. "Okay, enough funny business. You're hurt! No smiles." He said.

Clementine couldn't help but smile when he told her not to. She quickly shook it off and stared at her leg again with a blank expression.

"They're back!" Bonnie shouted.

Tavia turned around and stopped everyone from walking. She walked to the back and glared at Vince who looked at her confused. "Put her down." She said.

Vince's eyes widened. "She can't walk on it, Tavia!" he exclaimed.

"I don't care. Put her down!" she demanded.

Vince looked down at Clementine, who simply just nodded, so he stood her down.

"Walk." Tavia said, waiting for Clementine to take a step. The girl did as commanded, even though it hurt her a lot.

"See? She _can_ walk." Tavia said, walking back to the front and motioning for everyone to follow her. Carlos shook his head at the woman's command but walked forward anyway.

Kenny had kept quiet, surprisingly, but the hate in his eyes was clear to see. Sarita and him stayed close to each other and Bonnie and Russell didn't seem to mind.

Clementine was hurting but was forced to walk. Although Vince was there to keep her going, all she wanted to do was collapse to the ground and cry her eyes out.

They had been led off the trail and into the forestry around it were the truck was 'hidden'. Clementine's leg was snagging on roots and causing her immense pain. As soon as the grey, blood covered truck came into view, she sighed in relief.

Her breathing was laboured and she was shaking slightly from being overworked.

"Throw 'em in! Wyatt's driving and I get the other seat. That means Vince, Russell, Shel and Bonnie, you get to ride in back with them." Tavia explained as she jumped into her seat and slammed the passenger's door.

"You better hurry, dude. I'll start her up when you knock." Wyatt told Russell.

The young boy nodded in response and pulled up the back door so the 'prisoners' could be put in. After everyone was in, and Clementine was finally sitting, Russell knocked on the metal inside loudly and the truck started.

Nick watched as Clementine eyes tightly closed and her chest rose and fell in un-even patterns. "Are you okay?" he asked. His voice echoed around the quiet 'cage', causing every eye to turn in the young girl's direction.

She didn't hear them. All she could hear was the sound of her heart; which felt like it was in her mouth, and all she could feel was the heat of her sweat against her face. Her arms and legs were like jelly and her hand that had been using the cane was cramping.

"Clementine?" Luke asked from where he sat next to Nick and Carlos, across from the girl.

Everything felt like a dream to her; that was until she opened her eyes to be greeted with many concerned faces looking her way. She swallowed hard before pulling her good knee up to her chest and laying her head on it.

It didn't feel real; it didn't feel like she was sitting in the back of a truck with these people.

Her eyes met with Vince's. His mouth was moving but she didn't hear anything coming out.

"Let Carlos do something!" Molly spoke up from next to Alvin.

"I can't! If Tavia finds out, she'll have our heads!" Shel exclaimed.

"She looks confused… I don't think she can hear us." Vince said, not taking his eyes off Clementine's. "Clem?" he asked.

She just squinted her eyes at him. She knew he was trying to say something but she couldn't hear him. "I…I can't hear you…" she said quietly.

Vince turned and smirked at everyone else in the van before turning back to the girl.

He lifted his hands and pointed at her and then put his thumb up, then down. He was trying to ask her if she was okay, and luckily, she understood. She raised her thumb up but decided she should give him and explanation too.

"I'm just tired from walking, and my hand hurts…" she told him. He nodded and smiled down at her before turning his attention back to everyone else.

"Can't you untie us?" Kenny asked angrily.

"Sorry…" Bonnie muttered, which just made him angrier.

"I knew we couldn't trust you…" Alvin muttered from next to his wife.

"Hey, we're on your team!" Russell said.

"Hey, fuck you buddy!" Kenny yelled.

"Stop!" Shel demanded.

"I'm not just going sit around here and do nothing!" the bearded man stated.

"Just calm down…" Luke tried to calm the tension in the truck but it didn't work.

"Kenny, please…" Sarita tried too, but to no avail.

"Y'all don't know what it's like to be locked up; once you're in there's no way out!" he roared.

"We do know what it's like to be locked up, asshole! We've been in this exact situation before!" Nick said, finally letting his anger out.

"I'd stay out of this if I were you, boy…" Kenny said through gritted teeth.

"Mister, I ain't a boy!" Nick said, his rage slowly dying out.

Clementine started to gain her senses back as she heard muffled arguing. "You don't know Tavia like us. She won't be happy that you're shouting…" Vince warned.

"I don't care!" Kenny hissed.

"She's not like any other person you've met, trust me! She's worse…" Rebecca spoke up.

"Do you… Do you think she'll kill us?" Sarah asked quietly.

"No, Sarah. I won't let anything happen to you." Carlos told his daughter.

"Me neither!" Molly said.

"Please stop fighting!" Clementine's voice caused everyone to stop talking and look at her again. "We're all just tired and cranky…" she said, switching her gaze between everyone around her.

"She's right… We all just need to calm down!" Luke said in his soft, southern accent.

"Agreed!" Vince breathed the word out as he leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.

"Now ain't the time for sleeping, Vince. We're supposed to be watching 'em…" Bonnie said.

"What are they gonna do? Shoot us? They don't even have guns…" Russell joked as he laid his gun on his lap.

"We should at least watch him…" Shel said, looking at Kenny slightly scared.

"Then watch him!" Vince said, a small grin plastered on his face. Bonnie and Shel shared a questioning glance at each other before relaxing.

The truck bounced and wobbled as it drove back onto the trail and towards its destination; Howe's Hardware store.

Clementine hadn't moved her leg in a while so she decided now was as good a time as any. She wrapped her fingers around the blood soaked shirt that was tied to her knee and pushed her leg to the right. She dragged a trail of blood across the floor and groaned as she released her injured limb.

"Don't worry, Clementine. They have lots of medical supplies at Howe's. I'm sure they'll let Carlos patch you up as soon as we get there." Luke said, after watching her move around.

"I know Tavia is a little…moody, at times, but I'm sure she'll fix you up." Vince told the girl.

She just nodded her head, not feeling up to talking.

The truck his another bump on the road a little while later. "Dad… I have to pee…" Sarah complained.

"We'll be there in a while, Sarah. Can you hold it?" Carlos asked.

"I…I don't think so…" she said, wiggling around in her spot.

"I'll take her." Russell said, banging on the metal walls as the truck came to a stop.

Tavia pulled open the back a few seconds later and looked around. "What?" she asked.

"Toilet breaks." Shel said as Russell pulled Sarah up off the ground and jumped out with her.

Tavia was quick to stop Russell from walking over to the trees with the teenager. "You stay here, make sure no one gets in, no one gets out. Someone else can go with her." She said.

Everyone looked at each other before their gazes fell upon Clementine. She was the only one who wasn't tied up or pregnant. She was tired and hurt though, but they trusted her to keep Sarah safe out there.

It would be easy to say no, but did she really want these people to think she was weak or 'hating' on Sarah?

Her leg causing problems, for sure, but was her _will_ still as strong as before the accident? Did she still have the mental strength and physical courage, or was she becoming a shell of her former self?

"Clem?" Carlos asked, raising a hopeful eyebrow at her.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2:<strong>

* * *

><p>Clementine sighed in defeat and turned to face Vince. "Can you help me out?" she asked.<p>

Vince stood up and pulled her up under the arms. He stood her down outside and sat back down.

"Okay, be quick!" Tavia ordered, as she stood next to Russell behind the truck.

Clementine hobbled over to a nearby tree with Sarah while Russell closed the back door and turned his back away from the girls. Tavia kept her eyes on both girl the whole time.

"Thanks for coming. I know they made you and I know you're injured…" Sarah trailed off as she saw the pained expression on the younger girls face.

"We're friends, Sarah. And it's safer to go together." Clementine explained to her.

Sarah smiled and nodded before going into the bushes to do her business. Clementine watched as a brown butterfly landed on the tree next to her. She lifted her hand slowly and touched its wing just as it flew away.

"Done!" Sarah said as she walked back out from the bushes.

"Let's get back into the truck…" Clementine winced as she placed her foot down onto the trail.

"Are you okay?" Sarah asked, worried that her friend was injured.

"Yeah… It's just-." Clementine stopped talking mid-sentence as her cane jammed on the leafy trail and she fell onto her face. Her vision blurred and the high pitched ringing noise in her ears blocked out Sarah's cries for help.

She lifted her head to see Russell being grabbed by the back of his neck by Tavia when he tried to run to her side. The leader pushed Sarah in Russell's direction and stood above Clementine. "Stand up." She ordered.

Clementine shook her head to get the dizziness away and went to pick up her cane, but Tavia beat her to it and held the stick up in the air. "Up." The woman said again.

Clementine looked up at her angrily. "I need the cane." She said, trying to keep a calm demeanour.

"Fine. You can't get up then we'll leave without you…"

That sentence cause Clementine heart to drop to her stomach. She was a strong little girl, she had proved that to herself long ago and to everyone she had encountered, but being alone was one thing she never wanted to happen again.

Tavia had started to walk away, demanding that Russell and Sarah get into the truck.

Clementine used all the energy she had to pull herself up into a standing position. Tavia pushed Russell and Sarah into the truck and slammed the door down, ignoring the questions of where the other girl was.

The first step was the worst but Clementine only needed to take about five more to join the others. She dragged her sore leg along until she reached the truck, were she gripped the metal to stop herself from falling over.

"Ah, Clementine, I see you decided to join us! And you walked without this cane? Well done!" Tavia laughed as she watched the girl tremble. She then threw the cane over her shoulder and pulled back open the door.

"I guess you can join us again." She said, waiting for the girl to get in.

Her eyes watered as she looked inside at all the worried faces, but she blinked the tears away and turned back to face Tavia. "Can I get the…" she looked behind Tavia to her cane on the ground as she spoke, but the wider woman frowned and picked up the girl by the back of her jacket before pushing her inside forcefully; the young child's body skidding into a few legs and feet that quickly recoiled closer to their owners.

"Sit down, Clementine." Tavia's voice boomed into the truck.

Clementine pulled herself up and collapsed back against the wall into her seat, across from Vince this time; next to Luke. "Now we can get moving again." The boss muttered before closing the door and getting back into the front.

Everyone was quiet, staring at the girl who looked half dead.

She looked down at her hands against her legs.

* * *

><p><em>You're strong, Clem. You… You can do anything." Lee said drowsily from where he was handcuffed to the radiator in that Jewellery store in Savannah. <em>

* * *

><p>Clementine's eyes widened as she remembered this moment so clearly.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"But... I'm little." She had whimpered, not understanding why he had so much faith in her. <em>

_"Doesn't mean nothing. You're gonna see bad stuff, but it's okay." He told her. _

_"My parents. It's so horrible…" she cried from where she kneeled next to her dying guardian._

_ "I can't imagine, sweet pea." Lee sympathised with the little girl. _

_"And now… you? PLEASE… please don't be one of them. Please don't become a walker." She begged him not to leave her._

_ "There's only one thing you can do. You know that." He said, his voice was weak and raspy. _

_"I don't know if I can." She said, shaking her head at the thoughts of ending Lee's life. _

* * *

><p>Clementine put her hand up to her head and pulled her cap off her head. She ignored the strange looks she was receiving from the others in the truck and looked down at dirty fabric in her hands.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"You have to shoot me, honey." Lee whispered. <em>

_"Lee, no…" she refused to kill him. _

_"It's okay. It's okay. In Macon… the first days we met, do you remember?" He asked her. _

_"Yeah. I do." She assured him. _

* * *

><p>Clementine closed her eyes tightly as she tried to remember the story Lee had told her. It wouldn't come to her, no matter how hard she tried to relive the conversation (as much as she hated that moment). She remembered what happened next, though. She remembered the story gave her to courage to finish what she had started.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"Okay, Lee… I can do it. I can." Her voice cracked as she struggled to stay together.<em>

_ "Find… Omid… and Christa." He told her. _

* * *

><p>Clementine looked up from her cap and opened her eyes to look at everyone around her. She had lost Omid and Christa, and these people couldn't replace them, but could they be the next thing? Her eyes wandered back down to the hat in her hands.<p>

* * *

><p><em>She couldn't look him in the eyes as reality was finally taking its toll on her. "They're outside of town…by the train. You remember how to get back there?" he asked, making sure she would survive and make it out of Savannah. <em>

_"Yes." She admitted, as her eyes were glued to his hand cuffed to the radiator. _

_"Good." He whispered. _

_"They'll take good care of you." He assured her, as her tears dripped to the floor. She finally let a sob escape her mouth. _

_"And, Clem…" Lee trailed off. Clementine looked up at him waiting for him to finish._

_ "Keep that hair short." He smiled at her. _

_"I will. I'll cut it myself!" she promised. _

_"And also…" he trailed off again as his eyes started to close. _

_"What, what is it?" she asked, curious of what he had to say. _

_Maybe for some reason he had decided to leave with her!_

_"No. Don't worry…alright…" he said sleepily. _

_Of course she was wrong…_

_"I'll miss you." He whispered. _

_"Me too." She said, letting another sob escape her mouth. _

_She stood up slowly and raised her gun at Lee's head. His eyes slowly started to shut but he tried to keep them open. She cried in despair as her gun was aimed at his head. Her hands were shaking as she trembled in fear. _

_With one last look at Lee, she closed her eyes and shot the gun; ending Lee's life for good. _

* * *

><p>Her thumb ran across the bloodstain on the bill of her cap; Lee's bloodstain.<p>

A tear fell from her eyes and she quickly blinked the rest away. "I'll stay strong for you, Lee. I promise!" she whispered as she placed her cap back over her curls.

Luke watched as the newest member of the group placed her cap back on her head and released a shaky breath. She mumbled something to herself but he couldn't make it out. Even though she was right beside him, her voice was so quiet and barely audible.

Rebecca had started a quiet conversation with Alvin in the far corner of the truck so he decided he'd talk with his best friend next to him. "What are we gonna do?" he asked, turning to face Nick who was sitting to his right.

"Probably die…" Nick admitted his fears.

Clementine's head lifted and faced their way as Nick spoke.

"I'm sorry about Pete…" Luke apologized.

"Don't talk about him." Nick deadpanned as his heart ached for one more moment with his old uncle.

"You can't be so negative all the time!" Luke exclaimed.

"Why not?" Nick asked sadly.

"If you be negative, then there are negative outcomes." Clementine's voice caught Nick's attention.

"Like what, Clem? You're only eleven, how would you know…" he asked. Luke shook his head at Nick's words.

"Luke could've left me, after Carver burned the cabin. He could have thought 'She's not gonna make it' and just _left_. But he didn't, 'cos he stayed positive and was sure he could save me. And he did! _YOU_ could've left me to scream on the trail when… when I thought I would die…. But you didn't! Why's that?" she asked, looking at him eagerly.

"I knew you would be fine…" Nick admitted, a small smile forming on his face.

"That was positive! See?!" she exclaimed.

"Okay…okay. I get it! I'm a good guy, you don't need to tell me!" he chuckled.

Luke laughed louder and everyone looked at him questionably. Even Clementine, being in pain and exhausted, giggled quietly.

The truck suddenly jolted as it collided with something. Tavia's muffled voice could be heard as the back door opened. Everyone watched as Tavia hit Wyatt with her gun. "I don't care if the brakes are 'weak'! You don't damage MY vehicles!" she shouted.

"Get 'em up and to the pen! Vince I want you out there with them for the day, to make sure no one tries anything. Shel, you help Bonnie and Becca reload weapons in the armoury, and Russell, you're on roof watch!" she explained as Wyatt walked away, holding his head were Tavia hit him, and everyone was moved out of the truck and into the building.

Vince had a hold of Clementine's jacket so he could help her walk.

"I'll be down to check on you all later so behave and I MIGHT give you supper!" Tavia exclaimed, before walking away towards some stairs in the corner that must have lead up to her office; the one behind that huge window overlooking the whole building.

A man in a green coat with a long beard approached the group as they were lead towards the 'pen'. "Carlos, Tavia told me to bring you and someone names 'Clementine' to the clinic to get patched up." He said.

"Okay, Hank. Vince, can you help bring her?" Carlos asked.

"Sure." Vince said.

Sarah's eyes widened as she realised her father wasn't going to be with her. "Wait, dad!" she called as she stopped walking.

Carlos turned to look at her. "I'll be back soon, sweetie." He said quickly before following Hank, Clementine and Vince towards the clinic.

Molly and Sarita stopped next to Sarah. "It's okay, Sarah. He'll be back soon." Sarita told her.

"When?" Sarah asked.

The two women exchanged a look before Molly turned to Sarah and smiled. "We don't know… But I promise he'll be fine!" she assured the girl.

"Okay… Thanks guys." Sarah said, calming down again.

Kenny was helping Rebecca walk with Alvin. "I'm scared…" Rebecca admitted, as she held onto both men's arms.

"It's alright, Bec. We're gonna be fine!" Alvin tried to comfort his wife.

"We have to get out of here…" Kenny muttered.

"Maybe Luke has a plan?" Rebecca asked.

"He better…" Kenny said, looking at the back of said young man's head.

Luke had been listening to their conversation and his heart rate picked up. They were depending on him to get them out of this but he had no idea what they were going to do.

Russell pulled up the gate to the pen and ushered for everyone to go inside.

"Stay away from the fence, Tavia can see if you're messing with it." Bonnie warned them before leaving to find Becca with Shel and get to work.

"Thanks, Bonnie…" Nick said as she left.

Russell closed the gate and made his way up to the roof to work.

"Hey guys!" a slightly familiar voice chirped. Rebecca gasped.

"Reggie!" she exclaimed.

* * *

><p>In the Clinic, Vince lifted Clementine so she was lying on the table with the thin blanket and pillow.<p>

"Thank you." Carlos thanked the Asian man.

"Welcome. Good Luck, Clementine." Vince said, patting the girl's shoulder before heading towards the pen to 'take watch'.

Clementine was scared and Carlos could see it in her eyes. "Just stay calm, okay?" he asked.

She nodded her head.

Carlos un-wrapped the shirt to see that she had ripped the stiches. Her skin was a light purple colour around her knee and looked disgusting. Even though he was a doctor, it still made him sick to his stomach looking at her injury.

"I'm going to wash it, alright?" he asked.

"Will that hurt?" she asked, not really wanting any more pain.

"I'm not going to sugar coat this, Clementine. It's going to hurt…" he told her.

Her eyes widened as she imagined the pain this was going to cause her. "I…I don't want it to hurt! Is there any way to stop it?" she asked.

Carlos looked around at his supplies and saw a small bottle of Propfol which he could use as an anesthetic. He picked it up and turned to the girl. "This will put you to sleep, so you won't feel any pain." He told her.

"Okay…" she said, nodding her head as she examined the bottle in the doctor's hands.

Carlos picked up a clean needle and dipped it into the bottle, sucking some of the liquid into the syringe as he pulled the handle towards himself. "You'll just feel a slight pinch…" he warned.

She nodded her head and the doctor injected her with the drug.

She felt drowsy a few minutes later and quickly went unconscious.

Carlos slipped on a pair of rubber gloves and prepared to get to work.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3:<strong>

* * *

><p>Reggie and Rebecca had a short chat at the gate when everyone was pushed inside. The conversation was quickly moved over to some lawn chairs around a small fire in the middle of the yard.<p>

A black man in a grey hoodie approached the cabin group and frowned at each and everyone one of them. "You the people who killed Carver?" he asked coldly.

"Yeah…" Molly answered when everyone else seemed to lose their voices.

The man frowned even more. "Tavia's gonna kill you." He deadpanned before walking over to a picnic bench in the corner to join a blonde, short haired young woman in a leather jacket.

"Okay, so that's Mike. He's kind of an asshole but he saved my life, so I guess he isn't all bad…" Reggie explained, motioning to his stump where his right arm once was.

"What about the girl?" Nick asked.

"Alright, she's fucking weird! They found her walking around out front covered in guts and shit…" Reggie cringed as he told his old friends about the woman.

"What's her name?" Sarah asked, looking over her shoulder to see Mike and the lady talking quietly.

"Jane." Reggie said.

"I'm gonna hit the hay. You coming, hon?" Kenny said, standing up and smiling down at his partner.

"Yes. I'm getting tired. Goodnight everyone!" Sarita said, standing up and walking over to the bunk her and Kenny would be sharing.

After their quick catch up with Reggie, Nick and Luke also retired to their cold, uncomfortable beds. "Jesus! What are we supposed to do?" Nick asked, trying to get comfy but giving up since the surface his back was against was a hard as rock.

Reggie told them how Carver was going to let him back into the community even though he helped them escape, but now that Tavia was in charge, he really had no chance, and neither did they.

"I dunno, Nick. Why'd Kenny have to kill him? We could've taken Carver hostage and escaped!" Luke ranted.

"I dunno, man…" Nick said, hopelessly.

"I mean, he almost killed Clementine! He deserved to die, but I can't help but feel we've just made things so much worse…" Luke admitted.

Nick remained quiet as he processed Luke's words. "

I'm gonna get some rest…" Luke said, rolling over in his bunk and drifting off to sleep.

Nick just stared at the others around the fire in the middle of the yard.

* * *

><p>Bonnie, Shel and Becca had just finished reloading weapons in the armoury.<p>

"Finally!" Becca moaned as she leaned back in her chair to relax. She was only a teenage girl but she was a bad as three angry men!

"Stop complaining, Becca." Shel scolded her little sister.

"What? I hate having to work! I'm only a kid, shouldn't I get a day off or something?" Becca asked, sitting up straight again.

"You two need to stop arguing. We're all going to get into trouble 'cause of it…" Bonnie said, annoyed by their sisterly bickering. Her walkie talkie buzzed in her pocket so she pulled it out. She remembered her radio was tweaked so only her and Russell could communicate.

"Russell? Is that you?" she asked into the device.

"Yeah, Bonnie. I've been told to tell you, Shel and Becca to start stacking the canned food when you're done at the armoury." Russell's voice came through the radio.

Becca sighed loudly before standing up and leaving the armoury.

"I'll go with her. Seeya at the food storage area in a few…" Shel said before following her sister out of the armoury.

"Thanks, Russ. When's your shift over?" Bonnie asked into the walkie talkie.

"In a while, probably… I dunno. Things are gonna be different now that Tavia's in charge." The young boy's voice echoed around the room.

"Don't worry… We're getting out of here. All of us." Bonnie assured him.

"Okay, Bonnie. I'll talk to you later." Russell said, and the device went quiet.

Bonnie stuck a weapon into her pants before leaving the armoury to start her next shift.

* * *

><p>Carlos had just finished cleaning and stitching up Clementine's leg. It took him some time as he had to get all the dirt out of her infected wound. He looked down at his finished work and sighed.<p>

Clementine looked so peaceful, which was a good sight after seeing her in pain for so long, but her leg was a terrible purple colour and was swollen badly.

He found a leg brace in the small medical room and got Hank to cut it down so it was the right size for the eleven year old. He carefully bandaged and strapped her leg up before placing it around her left leg.

Now she couldn't bend it even if she wanted to.

A smile finally made its way onto Carlos's face as he finished the 'surgery'. He gently picked her up and started making his way towards the pen. Vince opened the gate for him and he walked inside with the girl in his arms.

"Is she okay?" Nick asked, instantly running to the Spanish man's side. He figured he wasn't going to get to sleep any time soon and joined the others around the fire shortly after Luke fell unconscious.

"She's fine. We just have to let her rest." Carlos explained to the capped as he lay Clementine down on one of the ground bunks. She stirred slightly but didn't wake; mostly because of the drug Carlos had given her earlier.

He noticed the two new people sitting at the picnic table next to the bunk he had laid Clementine down on.

Mike noticed him eyeing them suspiciously and decided to speak up. "Hey." He said casually.

Carlos stayed kneeling beside Clementine before speaking. "Hello." He said.

"I'm Mike." Mike introduced himself, sticking his hand out for the Spanish man to shake. "This is Jane." He added.

Carlos shook Mike's hand and watched the sad frown on Jane's face as she looked down at Clementine's sleeping form.

Carlos stood up and asked Mike and Jane to watch Clementine while he talked with the others. They promised to keep an eye on her so the doctor approached the circle around the fire.

He took a seat next to Sarah. She smiled up at him but remained quiet as the grown-ups talked.

"I'm so sorry…" Rebecca apologized, sending Reggie a small frown.

"Stop. I told you already, it wasn't you fault! Hi, Carlos." Reggie assured Rebecca before turning to face the Spanish man.

"Reggie…" Carlos greeted, eyeing the man's missing arm confused.

"I'll explain later…" Reggie said.

The gate opened up and in walked Vince and Tavia.

Tavia looked around, noticing everyone huddled around the fire (nearly everyone). She then turned her attention to Mike and Jane at the bench, and then to Kenny and Sarita who had gotten out of bed after hearing the gate open.

"Where's Luke and the girl?" she asked.

"Asleep." Nick mumbled.

Tavia turned to Vince. "Bring them supper, but not the two slackers." She said.

Vince's eyes widened. "They'll die is they don't eat, Tavia! They're just tired after today. Maybe we could…" he was cut off by Tavia's glare.

"Do as I tell you if you know what's good for you!" she stated.

Vince looked at the people around the fire one last time before turning his back and leaving to fetch food.

* * *

><p>Bonnie, Shel and Becca had just finished stacking the canned food when Vince came by, looking slightly angry. "What's the matter, Vince?" Shel asked.<p>

"Yeah, Vince. I'm sure Shel can make it better…" Becca said, with a sly smirk on her face.

Vince just shook his head before turning to Bonnie. "I need eleven cans, I think…" he said.

Bonnie raised an eyebrow at him. "Is there not twelve of them out there?" she asked.

"Thirteen…" he corrected her.

"So why only eleven cans?" Becca asked, curiously.

"Clementine and Luke are asleep so Tavia doesn't want them fed." Vince explained.

Shel opened her mouth to speak but quickly shut it again.

Bonnie carefully picked up thirteen cans and set them up on a black tray for Vince. She handed it to him gently, giving him a promising look. He sighed while counting the cans, knowing Bonnie would've given him a can for everyone.

"Tavia's not going to like this…" he said.

"I don't care. They all need to eat. Now, go back there; before you get into trouble!" Bonnie shooed the Asian man away.

* * *

><p>Tavia walked further into the pen. She eyed Clementine suspiciously. "What's that on her leg?" she asked, noticing the strange contraption.<p>

Carlos stood up. "It's a brace." He said, slowly making his way towards the girl to protect her from anything the crazy woman might try.

He didn't like the child when they first met because he feared she was working for Carver and would hurt his daughter, but he realised she was just a little girl and that she was Sarah's friend; as well as everyone else's friend too.

"Why is she wearing that?! I just told Hank to get you to clean her up!" Tavia boomed as she stomped towards the bunk.

Luckily, Carlos leaped in front of her and stopped her mid-stride. "If she can't walk, she can't work, and you'll never get anything done around here!" he explained.

Tavia scowled but stepped back. "You did me a favour, Carlos. I'll keep that in mind…" she muttered.

Vince came back with a tray of canned beans. He handed one to each person, except Clementine and Luke; who were still sound asleep in their bunks. T

here were two cans left and Tavia glared at Vince again. "I told you no food for those two." She whispered harshly in his face.

"I…I know, Tavia, but it's their first day! Look, she's just a kid…" Vince tried to change Tavia's mind, but she wasn't having it.

"Just get back to your post, Vince." She commanded.

She looked around the pen one last time before remembering something.

_"That's my baby. Alvin thinks he can take __**my**__ baby!? I'll make sure he's dead before that baby's born…" _

She remembered Carvers words clearly and reached for the gun in her pocket.

"I'll finish him off for you…" she whispered to herself. Obviously, Carver's death affected her. Seeing his body at the bottom of that hill near the ski lodge really traumatized her. She was going to avenge her love's death.

"Alvin! I need you to come here, NOW!" she shouted.

Vince had stopped at the gate to listen to what Tavia had to say.

"Wait! Please stay here…" Rebecca begged her husband.

"It's alright, Bec…" he told her before approaching the woman. He stood right in front of her, looking her dead in the eyes.

"Do you remember George?" she asked, trying to be sly and cunning in her approach to the situation.

Alvin's face showed the emotion of regret and sorrow. Of course he remembered George; they were best friends! He didn't mean to kill him. It was a bad situation that just got worse. It was either kill, or be killed…

"Yeah, I remember." Alvin said, pushing his glasses further up his nose.

Tavia smirked. "Consider this 'revenge'…" she whispered.

Alvin opened his mouth to ask what she was talking about but froze when Tavia lifted her gun to his head. Rebecca jumped up onto her feet and clasped her hands over her protruding stomach.

He turned his head and locked eyes with his wife. Alvin managed one final loving smile at Rebecca before his brains were blown out.

"ALVIN, NO!" Rebecca screamed, before collapsing onto her knees and sobbing into her hands.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4:<strong>

* * *

><p>Luke shot up in his bunk after hearing the gunshot. He rolled out of the bed and approached the crowd around the gate.<p>

Tavia pushed Vince closer to the cabin group. "Feed them, then! You're staying in here with them!" she hissed before storming out of the pen and slamming the gate down behind her.

"Carlos?" Mike called. The doctor turned to face the hooded man at the picnic table. "The girl's moving…" he said, pointing to Clementine.

Carlos made his way over to the bunk and kneeled down beside the child. He placed his hand on her chest as she opened her eyes drowsily and looked his way. "Carlos…?" she asked, her voice was slurred and sleepy.

"Yeah, it's me , Clem." Carlos said, the sadness from Alvin's death clear in his voice.

"Did…did something happen? Who are they?" Clementine asked, looking at Mike and Jane to her left. "Some new people." Carlos only answered her last question.

Luke decided to leave the gruesome scene and see if Clementine was okay with Carlos.

Clementine heard muffled sobbing and decided to investigate. "Who's crying?" she asked. "No one, Clementine. Why don't you get back to sleep?" Carlos tried to keep her from finding out what had just occurred.

She tried to look over to the source of the crying but a figure blocked her line of vision. Luke bent down on her right side. "You alright?" he asked, his southern accent reaching her ears in a soft, relaxing whisper.

"Mm hm." She said, nodding her head as best she could. "Luke, can you stay with her? Just… try and get her back to sleep." Carlos said, before leaving to console his daughter.

Rebecca was being comforted by Sarita while Kenny grabbed Vince by the collar. "What the hell?!" Vince gasped as he tried to release Kenny's grip.

Nick stepped in an pulled Kenny away from the Asian man. "Stop, Kenny! It wasn't him, it was Tavia…" Nick explained.

Kenny grumbled something under his breath before turning to Nick. "Why shouldn't we just kill him to make a point to that bitch?" he asked.

Nick shook his head. "Luke thinks we've already made things bad by killing Carver… We're not making another mistake like that!" the young man stated, stepping in front of Vince protectively.

Kenny looked down at the ground briefly. Was Nick trying to blame him for this whole mess? He was the one who killed Carver but that bastard deserved it! "Are you pinning this on me, boy?!" Kenny growled at Nick.

"No! I'm just saying, we need to think things through instead of acting out!" Nick explained, putting his hand out towards Kenny, in a useless attempt to calm him down.

"Just listen to him. He sounds like he knows what he's talking about…" Vince mumbled from behind the red capped man.

"Kenny…" Sarita called, dragging Kenny's gaze away from the two young men near the gate. "Coming, hon." He shouted before approaching Sarita and Rebecca on the ground.

"Thanks, man. I owe you one…" Vince said, scratching the back of his neck. Nick looked at Alvin's corpse and sighed. "Whatever…" he muttered before walking over to the bunks again and lying down.

Vince felt like he wasn't welcomed in the pen and needed a way to either get out, or make it up to everyone. His eyes scanned the pen, it seemed so much smaller now than it did while he was keeping watch outside it.

Sarah stood with Molly beside the fire, and heartbroken Rebecca, Kenny, Sarita and Carlos. "We've gotta do something…" Molly whispered.

Sarah looked up at her, her fear slowly dying down after the traumatic event that just happened. "Like what?" she asked.

Molly thought to herself for a minute. "I dunno, Sarah. I think it will have to be a group decision." She told the younger girl.

Sarah pushed her glasses up her nose and nodded, understanding that it was smart to have the whole group decide on a plan. She watched as Rebecca cried in anguish over her husbands death.

Carlos turned his attention away from Rebecca and put his hand on his daughters shoulder. "I think it's time to get some rest, Sarah." He said.

"Okay, dad." She said, quickly giving him a hug before retiring to the bunk beside Nick's. Molly jumped into the bed above her and muttered a goodnight before falling asleep.

Nick looked at Sarah blankly but she smiled at him. "Night, Nick." She whispered.

He didn't answer.

"Nick, did you hear me?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Just thinking, Sarah. Sorry…" he whispered, rubbing his eyes.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing! I promise. Now, get some sleep. Goodnight…" he whispered.

Sarah decided not to go into it anymore that night so rolled over and closed her eyes; ready for a good night's sleep.

* * *

><p>"Just tell me…" Clementine said, giving Luke her best puppy dog eyes.<p>

"You gotta go to sleep, Clem. I'll tell you in the morning!" he told her, still blocking her view of Alvin's corpse or Rebecca's distressed figure.

She frowned at him and looked at Mike and Jane again. She quickly turned her head back to Luke and beamed at him. "Can I walk?" she asked, beaming up at the brunette man. Her leg didn't hurt, so she could walk on it, right?

Luke smiled at her and looked at her bandaged leg. "Does it hurt?" he asked.

"Nope. It feels fine! Please?" she begged.

"I'll ask Carlos…" Luke said. He stood up and Clementine looked past him to see a a huddle of people on the ground. "What's going on?" she asked. Luke quickly sat back down, blocking her view again.

"Nothing, Clem." He said, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Yeah there is. Is that Rebecca crying?" the girl asked. Luke sighed in defeat, looking over his shoulder to see the pregnant woman drowning in her tears. "Yeah, it's Rebecca…" he admitted.

Clementine's eyes widened. "D…did something happen to her?" she asked. "Not her, Clem... It's Alvin; he…he's dead." Luke explained. Clementine remained quiet and closed her eyes.

"Are you okay?" Luke asked.

"Goodnight…" she whispered. Luke could see she was upset but didn't want to make things worse by questioning her. "Okay, Clem. If you need anything, I'll be in my bunk. Night…" he said, standing up and turning to meet Jane standing in front of him.

"She's a tough girl, I can tell by the way she talks, acts, even looks. Don't let her down…" Jane whispered.

Luke was shocked. This was the first time she had spoken and she was giving him advice. "What do you mean?" he asked quietly.

"Just… help her when she needs it but don't baby her or _force her into anything_. She's only a kid so she might be manipulated into stuff." Jane explained. She knew what she was talking about.

Luke nodded and smiled at the short haired woman. "Okay. Thanks…" he said, before jumping into the bunk above Nick.

* * *

><p>Wyatt was pushed into the pen and approached Vince. "We have to 'dispose' of the body, Tavia's orders…" the blonde haired man explained. Vince sighed, ignored the hateful looks from everyone in the pen, and helped Wyatt carry Alvin's corpse out of the yard and out of the building.<p>

He was thrown outside into the parking lot as a feast for the walkers. Wyatt helped to the disgusting deed before retiring to bed to rest after his clash with the end of Tavia's gun.

Vince was stopped in the halls by Tavia on his way back to the pen. "If you keep them in line tonight, I'll let you back into the community. Understand?" she asked. Her glare was as cold as ice.

Vince nodded his head. Tavia eyed him carefully before letting him go back to the 'prison'.

Rebecca finally calmed down enough to try and sleep. Kenny and Sarita lay in one of the bottom bunks together and Mike and Jane also went to their single mattresses away from the bunks.

That only left Vince awake.

He didn't want to sleep, he wanted to keep watch or talk with someone. He decided to sit at the fire in quiet and think to himself. His walkie talkie buzzed so he pulled it out of his pocket and pressed the button on the side. "Hello?" he asked into it.

"Vince, where are you? I'm in our room and you aren't anywhere around." Russell said, his voice filling the silence around the pen.

"I'm locked in the pen for the night…" Vince said quietly.

"Shit, man. What did you do?" the young boy asked.

"Tavia's losing her shit…" Vince said. A noise behind him cause him to turn his head and look as someone got out of bed. "Someone's waking up. I've gotta go, Russ. Hopefully I'll be out by tomorrow." He said into the radio before pushing it back into his pocket.

He stood up and turned to face the small person coming towards him slowly. Squinting to get a better look in the dim light of the fire, Vince saw Clementine up and walking. "What are you doing?" he asked, frightening her slightly.

"Just…walking." She said, pulling her leg along since she couldn't bend it.

"Do you need a hand?" Vince asked.

Clementine shook her head. She was determined to do this by herself. She moved a strand of her hair curly, black back behind her ear, up under her cap, and took another step.

Vince frowned and watched her slowly move away from him. "I'm sorry about Alvin…" he apologised, watching her stop in her tracks. She turned around and looked at him confused. "That was you?" she asked.

Vince shook his head slowly as his eyes remained glued to the ground. "I…I could've stopped her, but I didn't." he whispered.

Clementine's eyes widened as she gritted her teeth angrily. As far as she was concerned, Vince had just admitted to her that he took part in the killing of Alvin; her friend. "You're a monster!" she hissed, taking a small step; more of a stumble, backwards.

Vince looked up and locked eye with the eleven year old. "N…no, Clem! I…I'm not!" he tried to explained but she wasn't listening.

"I thought I could trust you, but you got Alvin killed! I actually thought you were _different_!" she explained, her anger clear in her voice.

"You don't understand, Clementine. Just let me explained…" he put his hand out to touch her shoulder but she pulled away and stumbled further away from him.

"No! Don't touch me!" she yelled, causing Vince to look around at the other people, still surprisingly asleep (or so he thought)

"Clementine…" he tried again but she just distant herself more. He saw something move from somewhere behind her and squinted to see what it was. Since he was so busy trying to see in the darkness, he didn't see Clementine turn and try and run.

She tripped up and just before she hit the ground, two strong arms caught her by wrapping around her waist. She looked up expecting Vince to be there, scowling down at her, but relaxed when her eyes locked with Luke's. "That was close, don't you think?" he whispered, helping her stand up straight again.

She gripped his arm and turned back to face Vince. He didn't look angry or annoyed, he looked hurt and sorrowful.

"You shouldn't be walking around, Clem. Carlos is not gonna be happy if he finds you up so soon…" Luke explained, eyeing Vince cautiously before calming down.

"I was just walking… to get my bearing back, right?" she asked, raising an eyebrow as she repeated something Luke had said before.

"Yeah, Clem." He said, smiling down at her. She was picking up his southern phrases and that made him happy.

"I'll be over here if you need me…" Vince said, leaving the duo and taking a seat beside the fire. "What happened? To Alvin, I mean." Clementine asked, looking up at Luke with her big amber eyes.

"Tavia shot him." Luke's three word sentence gave Clementine more insight into the situation than she had before. "So it wasn't Vince's fault?" she asked.

"I'm not sure, Clem. Ask someone in the morning. Maybe Nick will tell you? Better get you back to bed." Luke said, putting his hands on the girl's shoulders and leading her back to her cot. Once she was lying down again, he bent down next to her and mustered the most serious look he could. "Stay here this time." He ordered.

Clementine rolled her eyes but smiled at her close friend. "Okay… Night, Luke." She whispered sleepily.

"Seeya in the morning." He smiled down at her as she closed her eyes before heading back to his bunk. He jumped on to the uncomfortable mattress and closed his eyes, finally preparing for the nights rest he had been robbed from twice that night.

* * *

><p>Clementine was awoken by a light tap on her shoulder. She opened her eyes to see Vince above her, waking her from a long needed rest. She remembered the events from last night, and narrowed her eyes at him questionably. "You didn't want Alvin to die, did you?" she whispered.<p>

He shook his head, relief clear on his features. He was glad she finally understood he wasn't the bad guy.

"Sorry…" she apologised sheepishly. Clementine felt that she was really harsh towards him a few hours earlier when she had no reason to.

"It's alright, Clementine. That's not why I'm waking you, though. Tavia wants a word with everyone; I'm afraid that includes you." He explained, standing up but keeping his eyes on her.

She carefully got out of the wooden bed and stood up. Her leg felt a lot better. It was still painful to move but the pain was nothing like the day before. Catching Vince's worried eye, she sighed and gestured to her leg. "Its fine!" she assured him.

He nodded his head and walked ahead of her to join everyone else gathered by the gate, awaiting her arrival so the lecture could begin. Carlos eyed her carefully but looked away when the eleven year old turned his direction.

"Now that everyone is here, we can start." Tavia said, narrowing her eyes at the girl. "I know a few of us don't want to be here; that this place has a bad reputation with most of you misfits. Well, that was when Bill was in charge. I'm the leader now, and I am not as 'kind' as Carver used to be. I do not believe in second chances…" She looked at Reggie with a small smirk, "…so cross me, and you'll regret it. I understand that some of us are 'hurt', but if you are looking for pity, you've come to the wrong place. Clementine will be working just like everyone else; she can have a break when she breathing her last breath. Vince made a stupid choice last night, but he has shown me his loyalty and he will not be punished; this time. You can get back to work with Russell in the stockroom after this. The rest of you should have your assignments for the morning so, _everyone_, get to work!" Tavia ordered, leaving the pen and making her way to the main office.

Vince left after Tavia to meet up with Russell and get away from the hateful pen dwellers. "What are you doing this morning?" Sarah whispered to Clementine, gaining the younger girls attention.

The eleven year old looked at the clipboard in Nicks hands and turned to face Sarah. "I'm with Bonnie, reloading guns…" she said, not keen on the idea of loading clips for the next hour or so.

"I'm with Shel and Becca, bringing supplies out to the expansion for Luke, Kenny and Mike." Sarah whispered, trying to not get in trouble for communicating instead of heading to work.

"I'll Seeya later…" Clementine waved goodbye to Sarah as the teen left to find Shel and her little sister.

"Clem!" hearing her name being called, turned her attention to Bonnie waiting to lead the crippled child to the armoury. With an agitated sigh, the eleven year old slowly made her way towards the red head.

Bonnie looked down at Clementine with a sympathetic frown. "I'm still on your side, you know?" she whispered, watching the girls eyes dart to the left, as if mentally asking herself '_why should I believe you?' _Bonnie started leading Clementine to the armoury.

"I know it seems I've betrayed your group, but I haven't! If you don't believe me, I understand. I need Tavia to think I'm still with her so she won't suspect that me, Vince, and the others are going to break your group out!" Bonnie explained her plan as best she could to the minor.

Clementine dragged her leg along, struggling to lift it off the ground. "Do you need a hand?" Bonnie asked, concerned for the child's wellbeing.

"No, I'm fine…" Clementine grunted, taking another step forward. She hated when people were so concerned about her. She wished they would just leave her alone; especially this woman that had betrayed her group.

She believed Bonnie's explanation, but she was still angry that the woman had given them up to Tavia. Bonnie stopped at the red, armoury door and turned to face Clementine again. "Are you sure you don't-"

"I said I'm fine!" the girl snapped.

Neither person knew where the sudden outburst came from. Clementine's eyes were wide, as where Bonnie's. The older woman opened the door and walked inside, allowing Clementine to hobble in by herself and close the door behind her.

They took a seat across from each other next to a work bench with piles and piles of ammunition on it.

Their eyes locked, and Clementine could see that Bonnie was sincerely sorry about everything that happened. She couldn't be angry anymore, and instead, now felt she had been too harsh. "I…I'm sorry, Bonnie. I didn't mean to shout…" the girl apologised, clearly upset about how she acted.

The southern woman simply smiled at Clementine and picked up a clip to reload. "It's alright, city mouse. I should be the one apologising." She said.

Clementine copied Bonnie and started loading the clips. There was a short silence until Clementine decided she would ask about the plan Bonnie had mentioned earlier. "So, how are you going to get us out?" she asked.

Bonnie was glad the child had asked that question. "You're with Nick, Sarah, Molly and Reggie on the roof next. You'll need to tell them the plan okay? And make sure they promise not to let Tavia find out!" she made sure Clementine was clear that this was important; what she was about to tell her could get them all into trouble if someone on the inside was to hear.

"Okay. I'll let them know, now tell me!" Clementine determination made Bonnie smile.

The two girls leaned closer to each other. "First…"

* * *

><p>Sarah didn't like doing things with Becca.<p>

It was just one of those things she didn't enjoy; mostly because Becca was a bully.

Shel had already started pouring nails into buckets and sitting them in front of the girls. "Take two each and bring them out to the expansion. No messing or anything, just bring them out and come back for more. Got it?" the oldest girl made sure the two children understood their commands.

Sarah picked up her two buckets and went to walk outside to the path to the expansion, but Becca pushed by her childishly and ran outside. Sarah rolled her eyes and also made her was out.

"Come on, Sarah. Don't be such a baby! Loosen up!" Becca called over her shoulder as she watched Sarah struggle to keep the buckets from hitting the ground.

Sarah didn't know what happened, but something just snapped in her mind. Her eyebrows furrowed together, her jaw clenched, her hands made fists, and she felt words leaving her mouth before she even knew what she was doing. "The only baby here is you, Becca." She said, her eyes widening at her own statement.

Becca turned around with a small smirk on her face. "Maybe I was wrong 'bout you…" she whispered, walking into the expansion room.

Sarah felt proud of herself for standing up to Becca like that. She would have to tell her dad and Molly about it later. She followed the younger, short haired girl into the expansion.

Inside, Kenny and Mike were arguing while Luke worked, trying to block out their annoying voices. "I'm done talking about it!" Kenny exclaimed, hammering a nail into the wooden board against the window hard.

"You brought it up…" Mike muttered, holding the board in place.

Luke rolled his eyes and turned around to face Becca and Sarah. "Y'all here with more nails? 'Cos we need 'em…" he asked, scratching the back of his neck. Becca threw her buckets on the ground and left without saying a word, but Sarah stayed a little longer.

"Yeah, we'll bring more." She told the brunette man.

His shirt still had no sleeves, which made the raven haired girl laugh. "Are you not going to get a new shirt? I'm sure Bonnie will give you one." She reminded him.

Luke had forgotten he was sleeveless. He forgot, in the rush to save Clementine's life, he had yanked them off without thinking. With a small chuckle himself, he nodded to Sarah. "Yeah, I'll get one later. I, eh, used them to help Clem after her leg…" he trailed off, obviously not wanting to talk about it.

Mike and Kenny had stopped fighting to listen to the other two talking.

"I get it…" Sarah said, looking down at the ground as the images of Clementine's mangled leg returned to her. It looked bad when the eleven year old was lying on the couch, she couldn't even imagine what it must have looked like while Luke was 'fixing' it.

"Speaking of Clem, have you seen her around? Is she handling her job okay?" he asked, concern coating his words. Sarah shook her head.

"I haven't seen her since earlier. I'm sure she's fine, she told me she's with Bonnie all morning." Sarah assured the man on front of her.

Mike turned around and smiled at the girl. "You better get back to work." He said, indicating she had spent a bit too long away from her post.

She made her way to the door, smiling over her shoulder to the three men, and then making her way back to Shel and Becca. As soon as she left, the three men went back to work.

Kenny and Mike slowly started their squabbling from the very beginning of what they had argued about before, leaving Luke to re-hear the stupid conversation from square one.

* * *

><p>"Please, don't mess this up! I'm already in a lot of trouble, and don't want to be in anymore." Reggie begged Molly and Nick to just water the plants and pull some weeds like they were supposed to do, instead of messing around like they had been when they first arrived in the greenhouse on the roof.<p>

"Don't worry, Reggie! We're not children." Nick assured the one armed man.

Molly started pulling weeds out of some pots. Nick picked up a watering can and walked next to her, standing a little further away from her than most others would. "I'm not going to bite, you know?" she joked, her smile growing when she saw Nick's cheeks turn a light pink colour.

"Yeah, well, how do you know I won't?" he asked, smirking at her before turning back to the plants on front of him.

There was a short silence, which Molly soon broke. "So… You've been here before. Is it really as bad as everyone says it is?" she asked.

Nick looked at her sadly before nodding his head. "There is no way in hell Tavia is going to stay this calm for much longer…" he muttered.

"Calm?! Last night, that was her being 'calm'?!" Molly gasped. She thought that Tavia's bad side had shown last night. If that wasn't the worst of it, she wasn't planning on sticking around for more.

Nick looked over to Reggie who was working at the other side of the greenhouse. "Reggie knows he's not getting back, and to be honest, I'm pretty sure he's right." He whispered, careful not to let the other man hear.

"Maybe we can get out of here before anything happens?" Molly tried to be optimistic, but even she knew what had just been said was impossible.

"Do you think all our answers will just come in through the door?!" Nick exclaimed, pointing to the glass door to his right, and Molly's left. They heard the door creak open and both their heads spun in that direction.

Sarah slowly walked inside, her fingers entwined together as she twirled her foot and stared at the ground.

Nick and Molly looked at each other confused before the young man stood up straighter, away from the blonde haired girl and cleared his throat. "Hey, Sarah." He greeted, earning a small wave from the raven haired teen.

"Is it that time already?" Reggie asked, walking closer to the three others. "Where's Clem?"

The first hour had gone already and the two children were scheduled to help up in the greenhouse for the next hour. Sarah stood up straighter and locked eyes with Molly, giving a quick smile, and then turning her attention to Nick.

"Clem's waiting downstairs for someone to help her climb 'em. There too steep for her and I'm not strong enough to carry her…" she explained. Nick nodded his head and turned to Reggie.

"I'll go get her?" he asked, already making his way to the door.

"Be quick! If Tavia see's you two slacking she'll not be happy." The one armed man warned.

As Nick left the greenhouse, Reggie returned to his job and Molly brought Sarah to a table with a berry plant in the middle, and a basket sitting next to it. "You doing okay, Sarah?" the older girl asked.

"Yeah. I wish I could go see my dad though…" Sarah said, pushing her glasses back up her nose. Molly nodded her head, letting Sarah know she understood that she missed her dad.

"Well, you'll be able to see him at supper. I'll show you how to do this and then we can get to work, right?" Molly rubbed her hands together as she picked up a pair of shears. Sarah copied her and picked up her own cutters.

"So we pick the berries and cut off the dead branches…"

* * *

><p>Nick made his way down the stairs, seeing Clementine sitting on the bottom step tapping her right foot to a steady beat while left injured leg just stuck out on front of her, as she was unable to bend it.<p>

Nick cleared his throat as he got closer to the young girl, and her head turned to look at him. "Looking for some help?" he asked, smiling down at the child. She nodded her head, sadness clear in her eyes.

Nick pulled her up into his arms and started up the stairs. "It'll get better, Clem." He tried to cheer her up, but she just sat in his arms and stared ahead. She sighed and shook her head before, smiling at the man carrying her. "Yeah, I know. I have something I need to tell you and Molly!" she explained, the upset side of her being pushed to the back again.

Sometimes Nick wished she would just let it out. She had obviously been spending too much time with Luke. He always kept his emotions hidden beneath his calm smile, but Nick knew it was a fake.

As they made it back up onto the roof, Nick kept a hold of the girl until they walked into the greenhouse. Of course, Clementine complained, but the man ignored it. When he stood her down, she fixed the blue coat Luke had given her back at the ski lodge and nodded her head, thanking Nick silently.

"So what do you have to tell us?" said man asked. Clementine took a seat on the ground, which Nick quickly pulled her back up again. She gave him a confused glare, waiting for him to explain. "Reggie…" he whispered, as all four workers sneaked a peak at the one armed man.

"Okay, Clem. Tell us!" Sarah chirped, awaiting the news that the younger girl was in such a rush to tell them at the bottom of the stairs.

"Bonnie has a plan." Clementine said, smirking at her friends confused faces. Before she could speak more, however, the greenhouse door opened and Tavia walked in. Her eyes went straight to the huddle of people around the door.

"Reggie!" she hissed, pulling the man's attention away from his work, to the people in a group.

"Tavia! I…I can explain…" he began making his way towards her, preparing an excuse.

"You have blown it. Come with me. The rest of you stay here!" she shouted, grabbing Reggie's stump and pulling him out onto the roof.

Inside, Nick, Molly, Sarah, and Clementine all exchanged looks of fear. "Is…is she gonna…" Sarah whispered, fearing for Reggie, and herself. Molly assured her things would be okay.

She couldn't have been more wrong.

Nick and Clementine approached the door and peaked out through a crack in the glass. They saw Tavia pushing Reggie closer and closer to the edge as he tried to get out of trouble.

Nick clasped his left hand over Clementine's eyes and pulled her away from the glass with his right hand, just as Reggie screamed and everything went quiet. Nick turned Clementine around, knowing she was very determined and independent, and kneeled on front of her. "Keep your mouth shut." He whispered.

"What?! Why? What if she wants me to speak to her?" the young girl asked, giving him a questionable glare.

"You know what I mean, Clem. If she says anything to pin something on us, I'll take the blame. You don't say anything!" he spoke quickly, standing up as soon as the door started being pushed open.

"Reggie said he didn't know you were talking. Why was that?" Tavia asked, stepping closer to the four frightened people.

"Sorry. We were just talking, it was a mistake. We understand that now." Nick spoke clearly, making it sound much more believable than it actually was.

"And who was it that started this conversation? Was it you Nick? Was it Sarah? How about this new woman, what's your name; Molly?" she hissed, taking another threatening step forward, forcing the small group to stand back.

Clementine understood what Nick had meant now.

She felt in her heart that she needed to be the one to take the blame.

Tavia wouldn't hurt her, right? She was already crippled. Would the leader really lay a finger on an already injured little girl?

She also thought about Nick's warning, and that made her think that she was underestimating Tavia's abilities. Nick had known her longer, so he knew what she was capable of.

Clementine knew if she didn't say anything, then Nick would take the blame, and she was sure whatever Tavia planned to do to Nick would be much worse than what she would do to an eleven year old little girl.

What would she do?

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5:<strong>

* * *

><p>Clementine released a breath she didn't know she was holding in, causing Nick to tighten his grip on the hand he had placed on her shoulder seconds before. She managed to look up at him for a second while he stood behind her. He could read her like a book. His eyes widened when she looked straight forward again and cleared her throat.<p>

"Stop blaming them, Tavia. It's my fault…" she said, locking eyes with the smirking woman.

Nick stepped forward, gently pushing Clementine behind him. "She's covering for me." He stated, clearly upset that she had turned herself in like that. He had told her, he actually thought he got through to her, but in the long run, he didn't.

Clementine gave herself up to save the others.

Tavia must have noticed his emotions too, her smirk growing on her face. "As far as I see it, Nick and Clementine BOTH started this. Am I right?" she asked, turning her icy gaze to Sarah and Molly; who both stood still, fearing for their life. Sarah was growing anxious, but Molly's presence next to her helped her keep a calm head.

"I'm taking your silence as a 'yes'." Tavia sighed, disappointed they didn't answer her question; give their friends up.

Nick shook his head and pushed Clementine further back. He wasn't going to let this happen. "It was me and only me, Tavia." He growled, his anger towards the woman becoming clearer by the second. He managed to keep her eyes on his the whole time they stood in the greenhouse.

With an agitated sigh, Tavia motioned to the door. "Get to your next jobs." she demanded, pinching the bridge of her nose while the four prisoners scurried out the door; Nick practically dragging Clementine so they could get away from the mad woman as fast as possible.

Molly and Sarah quickly departed to the clinic area to help Carlos, Rebecca and Sarita. They decided to keep the whole 'greenhouse scenario' to themselves since they seemed to get away with it.

Nick scooped Clementine up into his left arms at the top of the stairs and ran down as fast as he could. This time, Clementine didn't complain. She couldn't get her head around why Tavia had just let them go. She looked at the side of Nick's head, noticing his panicked features.

"We're not in the clear yet, are we?" she asked, her heart dropping as Nick avoided her gaze, but shook his head 'no'.

"She's gonna kill us isn't she…?" Clementine's mind went straight to the worst possible outcome, her voice cracked slightly at the end of her sentence as any trace of hope about Bonnie's plan was crushed beneath her fear.

Nick finally looked her in the eyes as they walked out the back door into the expansion. Clementine saw the anger in his eyes, and Nick saw the fear in hers.

"I ain't gonna lie, Clem. We are in some amount of trouble." He admitted. He decided there was no point in lying to her since he knew what Tavia was like. They were in _serious_ trouble. Not in a million years would Tavia just let them away with _anything_. Not even something stupid like talking instead of working.

"What's she gonna do?" she asked, looking at the fence to their right that was keeping walkers out of the expansion while it was being worked on. She had been scared before, but mostly of the walkers. The last time she was this scared of a living person, was at the St. Johns Dairy Farm.

Nick cleared his throat as he thought about all the things Tavia might do to them. He didn't have the heart to tell the eleven year old, so he turned against his previous decision and lied to the girl. "Not feed us, maybe. She might exile us either; you know, throw us out. We could use that to our advantage, though; _IF_ that's what she decides to do to us." He explained, pushing open the door into the room they were scheduled to work in.

Luke spun around from where he kneeled over some wooden planks on the ground and smiled at the duo that walked inside. His smile slowly disappeared as he noticed the worried frowns on each of their faces. "What's wrong?" he asked, standing up, leaving his hammer on the ground.

Clementine opened her mouth to speak, but Nick placed a hand against her chest, indicating she shouldn't tell, and then stood her down.

"Hey, Clem, Why don't you come over here and help Mike hold up this board?" Kenny called across the room, preparing to nail down one of the last few boards to cover up the windows. The girl gave Nick a scared glance, which the man brushed off and sent her on her way.

Luke grabbed Nick by the shoulder and looked him dead in the eyes. "What's wrong?!" he asked again, the concern all too clear in his tone.

Nick pushed Luke's hands off him and sighed. "Look, I'll tell you alter. Let's just get to work before Tavia gets here. I'm sure she doesn't want us talking…" his last sentence was purposely sarcastic, which Luke didn't understand, but let it slide since his friend seemed so on edge. They went back to sorting the planks on the floor.

Kenny noticed Clementine was unusually jitty; every time his hammer came into contact with a nail, she jumped slightly. "Is everything alright, darlin'?" he asked. She nodded her head quickly and went back to focusing on keeping the board in place.

Mike also noticed her behaviour was strange, but decided bringing it up would be such a good idea. "Got a good grip?" he asked instead.

Receiving another nod of the head from the eleven year old, Mike looked up at Kenny and they shared a curious stare, before Kenny hammered another nail into the board; Clementine jumping at the sudden thump once again.

When they finally finished the work for the day, all five expansion builders sat to rest for the five minutes they were still supposed to be on duty.

Clementine limped to Nick's side and scooted as close as she could to him without hurting her leg. They both sat with their backs to the door, while Luke, Kenny and Mike sat across from them. Luke watched as Nick leaned closer to her and whispered something into her ear, which she didn't seem to take in since she still stuck close to him.

Kenny, Mike and Luke looked at Nick and Clementine with wary faces. Neither of them noticed as they both seemed lost in their own little world. That was until the door to the room opened and Clementine jumped, gasping as she turned around to face it, while Nick looked down at her sympathetically.

Russell stood at the door, a rifle in hand. "Suppers waiting for you in the pen." He said, standing back to let them out, almost like a gentleman would do for his date at a fancy restaurant. Except, instead of a bouquet or flowers or box of chocolates in hand, he had a powerful weapon capable of killing in a heartbeat.

As they made their way to the pen, Nick and Clementine stayed at the back; mostly since Clementine's leg was becoming a burden to her. Luke stayed a little ahead of them, carefully listening into their quiet whispers.

"But…"

"I promise, Clem, I won't let her harm you!" Nick sounded slightly harsh, but he had every right to be. Clementine was trying to get him to understand why she took the blame. He couldn't forgive her; he couldn't forgive himself more, though.

"What about you…?" she asked, sadness clear in her voice; which she had raised into more of a quiet shout.

There was a short pause.

Nick sighed, finally giving in to her pleading tone. "If it keeps you safe, then I guess I'll just have to take whatever I get."

Luke felt an urge to spin around and hug his best friend, but stopped himself from doing so since he still had no idea what they were talking about. Instead, he bit his lip to stop any proud chuckles from escaping and continued to eavesdrop.

They rounded one of the corners of the huge shelves in the main building and up ahead, the pen came into sight. Mike and Kenny were already almost at the gate.

"She…she'll kill you!" Clementine's cry reached Luke's ears in such a panic, he couldn't stop himself from turning to face the duo behind him. Nick was already pulling the girl up into his arm and walking faster to catch up to Luke.

"Don't cry… She'll think we're weak!" he whispered, trying his best to calm down the child.

She managed to keep it together and stop the tears from falling. Her sudden outburst was as quickly shut down as it was let out. To both men, it almost seemed she had a lot of practise.

"What's going on? Who's gonna kill who?" Luke asked, scratching his neck sheepishly, since he practically just told them both he had been listening in on their conversation.

"I can't tell you here, Luke. If someone hears, we're screwed. Just trust me this one time, would you?" Nick asked, small sweat beads appearing on his brow. Luke nodded his head, trying to figure out himself what they had been talking about. It sounded like they were both in trouble, but Nick more than Clementine.

"We're gonna be fine. We just gotta stay positive, right, Clem?" Nick said quickly as they walked through the gate to the pen.

"Stay positive…" Clementine repeated the black haired man's words as he stood her down.

They slowly made their way to the chairs around the fire. Food was waiting next to Carlos for them. They picked up a can each and dug into their chicken soup. The meal was good, but something was off. ***(sorry for rushing here, will re write something and fix later)**

Nick and Clementine had stayed scarily quiet. Molly and Sarah tried really hard to get them to talk, but neither would speak.

As everyone else chatted among themselves, Clementine kept her eyes on the gate; over time grasping onto Nick's arm. Nick just sat staring at the fire, only acknowledging the girl next to him. Neither seemed to enjoy the first proper meal in a long time. They just slowly ate, not even noticing there was nice tasting food being consumed.

"Bonnie told me and Sarita that Clem will tell us the plan." Rebecca whispered, as everyone went quiet and stared in the little girl's direction. She didn't realise they were staring at her until Kenny tipped her shoulder. "You know the plan?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

This question brought Nick back to earth. He looked down at Clementine curiously. "Yeah, you never told us the plan…" he said.

If Clementine was completely honest, she couldn't remember the whole plan; only snippets of what Bonnie said stuck with her. "Y…yeah. She…uh…she told me that…uh…" Clementine stutter of an explanation was cut short as the gate was pulled open and Tavia walked inside.

She eyed everyone suspiciously, giving an extra glare to the blue shirted young man and injured, young girl.

"So your first full day went pretty well; for most of you anyway." That first sentence had everyone looking at each other confused.

Luke's eyes widened as something became clearer to him. Nick and Clementine had obviously done something they shouldn't have.

"I don't preach forgiveness like Bill did. I preach power. I expect you to follow my rules, and when you don't…" she locked eyes with Nick, who scowled at her and turned his attention to Clementine who wouldn't look up from her hands. "…you will be punished. Sarah, would you like to tell me what happened in the greenhouse earlier? Who took the blame? It wasn't you, was it…?" Tavia smirked at the fear in the teenagers eyes.

Carlos looked at his daughter in shock. "Sarah?!" he gasped. If anything happened to his girl, he would stand up for her even if that meant giving his life to save hers.

Sarah cleared her throat and closed her eyes before replying, "It…it was Nick and Clem…Clementine." All eyes went in the duo's direction as both of theirs were glued on Tavia.

"Stand up." Tavia ordered. Nick stood up first, and then pulled Clementine up so she was standing next to him. The youngest cabin group member leaned against Nick since her leg was painful from working all day.

"Was it still your fault?" she whispered, menacingly.

"It was my fault, not Cle-"

"Yes." Clementine's quick answer caused Nick to frown down at her. He was confused as to why she was getting herself in so deep. Did she really care about him that much?

Tavia nodded her head respectfully. "You're not gonna let him take it alone are you?" she asked, waiting for Clementine's gaze to meet hers.

With a shake of her head, then a moment of realization, Clementine stood up straighter; all the fear in her eyes dying out. "What do you mean? It was _my_ fault." The eleven year old spoke clearly and loudly, almost as if she expected Tavia wouldn't hear her otherwise.

"Do you want to tell me _now_ what you were talking about up there?" Tavia didn't blink as her and Clementine had a face off.

The young girl's eyes turned to the ground for a split second as her mouth opened slightly while she thought of an excuse. She quickly got her stance back and smirked at the woman. "About you."

Tavia chuckled quietly before whispering to herself, "Bill was right…"

She turned her attention to Nick next. "So now you go quiet?" she hissed, watching his face contort in anger.

"He's always quiet." Clementine spoke again, out of turn, also. It sounded to everyone else that she was standing up for Nick. She was, kind of, but she was mostly just messing with Tavia's head.

"Do you know how many rules you have broken today, young lady?" Tavia's question caused concern with the other members of the group, who all sat, shocked by what was happening.

Carlos decided to speak up, to try and get Clementine out of the hot seat. "I need to change her bandages." He said, standing up and acting as normal as possible as he took a step closer to the three people standing already.

He stopped when Tavia sent a glare his way. "Later. She'll have plenty more wounds needing attention when I'm done with her." Tavia said as she grabbed a hold of Clementine's wrist roughly and pulling her closer to herself.

Nick stepped forward and put his hand on the eleven year olds shoulder. Tavia took a hold of his arm too and turned around, making her way to the gate with the two survivors. Clementine glanced over her shoulder as she was practically dragged along to see all the scared, shocked, and angry faces watching her and Nick get taken away.

Her eyes landed on Luke, who jumped up and started following them. Even though fear was coursing through Clementine's veins, she managed a reassuring smile at the man who saved her life twice.

"Stay positive!" her two words reached his ears just as the gate was slammed shut on front of him. He grabbed a hold of the bars and squeezed them tightly.

_"Stay positive."_

Luke was able to do it before; when the cabin went up in flames, when the group got separated, when Clementine was so close to death in his arms.

Why then, could he not muster a single positive thought in the moments that followed the events of his best friend and 'little sister' being dragged away.

The only thing he could focus on was the one thought that wouldn't leave him alone.

_"They're dead…"_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6:<strong>

* * *

><p>The door was slammed closed behind them as Tavia released her grip on Nick and Clementine. Her office (which once was Carver's) was neat and tidy; nothing out of the ordinary stood out to either captive.<p>

The curly haired woman pointed to her desk, while turning to the younger rebel. "Go sit over there. If I catch you turning around, that's another strike against my rules." She said. To Clementine, it didn't sound that bad for her, it sounded like if she turned around, she would be faced with something 'not nice'. Something to do with Nick probably...

Nick looked around the office, his eyes stopping when they came across a chair with straps on the arm rests in the corner. 'What kind of sick twisted freak keeps one of these in their office?!' was what he felt like shouting, but he bit his tongue to stop it from coming out.

"Sit in it." Tavia said calmly, after noticing his long inspection of the chair. He didn't complain, just walked over and sat down as if it was nothing. He wanted Tavia to know he didn't care what she did to him, as long as Clementine was okay.

Tavia strapped his hands down tightly so there was no way of him getting up. His eyes wandered to Clementine, who was fighting the urge to spin around and watch what was going on. "It's alright, Clem. It's-" his words stopped flowing as a switchblade got pressed against his cheek.

Tavia scowled at him as she kept the blade held against his skin.

The next thing he knew, blood was flowing from the shallow cut across his left cheek. It ran down his face, staining his skin and stinging slightly, but he only flinched a little and nothing more. He could taste some of his own blood that had made it into his mouth.

That was only the beginning.

Tavia walked over to the table on front of Clementine, and rested the switchblade on it. "I don't have much, but anything can be used as a weapon. Did anyone ever tell you that, Clementine?" she asked, looking down to the mute child, who shook her head in response. "Well it's the truth."

She pulled off her radio and sat it on the desk. "Great for beating heads in with."

She placed some keys on the desk next. "Good for disarming the living. A quick stab to the wrist and any weapon will be dropped." She explained.

Clementine was taking all this information in and preparing a plan; something she had been planning ever since Tavia walked into the pen, her keys dangling from her pocket like she was making sure everyone knew she was in charge.

Next, Tavia placed some weird black box on the desk. "This is the last of my things." She said, watching Clementine look at the last item confused, but shrugging it off as another pointless torture weapon.

Nick watched the crazy woman from where he was strapped to the chair, his eyes widening at the last thing she set on the table. "Is that…"

"Be quiet over there!" Tavia snapped.

Nick knew that the last object she had placed on the table was made to kill; or at the least, seriously injure.

He worried about himself now, he really didn't want to die. No matter how many times in the past he wished to die, his wishes were never answered. Now at the one time he felt like living, death was probably coming for him. All these thoughts were thrown aside when Nick noticed the small smirk on Tavia's face as she looked down at Clementine.

He came to a sudden realisation.

She wasn't planning on hurting him.

She was planning on hurting the girl.

"Tavia!" he gasped, finally fighting the restraints around his wrists. The leader of Howe's turned to look at him with an evil glare. "I know what you're doing! Leave her alone!" he growled, earning a small smile from the woman.

She slowly walked towards him and leaned in close to his face. "I don't know what you're talking about…" she whispered sarcastically.

Clementine took this as her queue to start her plan.

She picked up the key-ring over filled with keys of all sorts and stuffed it into her pocket to give to the group later; if she got the chance. In the back of her head, she knew this was probably suicide mission, but she had to try or Bonnie's plan would never work.

The plan was that one of the guards; Wyatt probably, would sneak an extra key from Tavia's desk. It would be really hard for him to get into the office in the first place, so now that the eleven year old had the whole set of metal keys, they didn't need to risk breaking in.

Becca was going to distract Tavia the whole time, under Shel's protective watch; obviously, while Wyatt opened the pen up, and let everyone out.

Bonnie had access to the armoury so guns weren't a problem.

Russell and Vince were taking care of supplies such as food, water, clothes, and other things like that.

Clementine was starting the plan right then, as she picked up the radio off the desk in front of her and turned to face Tavia and Nick. With one quick, hard strike to the back of the head, Tavia fell to the ground, dazed and confused.

Nick flashed Clementine a worried frown, but she just smirked back at him and pointed to the pocket with the key in it. He didn't know what she meant, but he could find out after they were safe.

She dropped the dented radio next to the torture chair and started unbuckling Nick's right hand. "The plan has begun…" she whispered, surprising the man slightly. What surprised him more, however, was Tavia grabbing the girls injured leg, causing Clementine to cry in pain, and pulling her to the ground.

She had never finished freeing Nick's hand so he struggled harder to get free as he watched the plump woman destroy the leg brace under her foot as she got back to her feet. Clementine continued to fight against the pressure on her limb while reaching across for the radio next to the chair a little ways away.

Tavia leaned back and grabbed the switchblade off the desk before kneeling on top of Clementine, looming over her like the monster she was.

Another yelp of new pain reached Nick's ears as he looked up from his wrists to see the blade's handle protruding from Clementine's right shoulder; the one closest to him. His right hand suddenly came free but as he tried to stand up, his other hand stopped him from reaching his friend.

By now, Tavia had taken a hold of the young girl's neck and was quickly squeezing the life out of her. "Bill saw you as a brave young girl, capable of great things. He…thought you'd make a great leader!" Tavia hissed, tightening her grip slightly, "All I see you as is competition. Little girl or not, I'm getting you out of the picture. Once. And. For. All."

Clementine's face was turning a light shade of purple as her kicking and clawing at the woman's hands became weaker.

Nick's hands were shaking so bad, he had trouble unbuckling the last strap. He was grasping the strap and pulling with all his might in an act of pure rage. He couldn't let Tavia choke Clementine to death; he just couldn't!

Clementine thought that was the end for her. Her lungs begged for air, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't inhale.

Strangely, the hands were removed from her neck and she gasped and spluttered as oxygen finally entered her system. She knew something had been wounded in her throat since she couldn't take in a full breath without pain erupting in her neck, but she was relieved the she was able to get a tiny bit of air into her lungs.

That relieved sensation quickly faded as Tavia grabbed the black box from earlier off the table.

Now, she was armed with a _taser_.

Nick felt tears form in his eyes as he failed once again to free his hand. He reached out to grab Tavia by the arm, but he couldn't reach. "Stop! Please!? Clem, Clementine!" he shouted, all the fear he had kept inside finally coming out.

It was too late.

Clementine locked her bloodshot eyes with Nick; still gasping for air, and managed a small smile before Tavia pushed the Taser into the girl's neck, and pressed the button.

"No!" Nick cried, finally breaking free and charging into Tavia's side. They both fell to the side, away from Clementine and the death chair.

The woman expected his attack, quickly pushing him closer to the door and standing up. "What's the matter, Nick?" she asked, smirking as she pushed Clementine onto her side, facing away from them both, with her foot.

Something snapped in Nick as he looked at Clementine lying motionlessly on the ground, the small jolts and twitches she had been doing coming to a halt. "You…YOU MOTHERFUCKER!" he shouted, running towards Tavia again.

He grabbed her by the hair, not caring she was a lady, and threw her to the ground.

She chuckled quietly as she sat up and looked at the destroyed man. "This is a new side of you…" she stated, purposely trying to get a reaction out of him. She rubbed her head where he hair had been pulled, but didn't try and fight back.

Nick reached over to the desk and grabbed the closest thing he could reach, which was a wooden stand with someone's name carved into it. Tavia didn't flinch as he lifted it above his head. "Sinking to my level, Nick?" she asked, awaiting the final blow that would end her life.

Nick's tears were falling uncontrollably. "I'm…not…like you…" he cried, his voice cracking as he hit Tavia on the side of the head, only hard enough to only knock her out. If he did kill her, he didn't care. He threw the wooden block to the ground next to him and dived onto the floor next to Clementine.

"Clem…?" he sobbed, rolling her back onto her back. She looked so peaceful, and he knew that could only mean one thing. After placing his hand to her neck in search of a pulse, his thoughts were confirmed.

"No… SHIT! Clementine! This can't be happening…" he was talking to himself like a manic, before finally getting a grip, and placing his still trembling hands on her chest. He performed CPR for a mere thirty seconds before pulling the girl up into his arms and scrambling out of the office.

His tears blurred his vision as he ran down the stairs and into the main building.

Vince was nearby with Bonnie, discussing the plan to him in more detail when Nick hobbled past, barely able to stand. "Nick!" Bonne called, but he ignored her. His actions are what caused Bonnie and Vince to follow him to the pen.

"O…open the door!" he cried, scaring Russell half to death with the look on his face. The younger boy didn't complain however and opened up the gate. Nick took three steps inside and then fell to his knees.

"CARLOS!" he called, pulling the whole group to him, were they stared down at Clementine's corpse in his arms. "I…I tried… She…and I…" he couldn't explain what he wanted to but lay her flat on the ground and let Carlos take over.

Luke couldn't blink, he couldn't move, he couldn't breathe. The girl he had saved twice…was dead?!

He couldn't believe it, he WOULDN'T believe it! She wasn't a walker yet so maybe there was a chance. "You…you can save her, right, Carlos?" he whispered, finally finding his voice, as everyone else just stood back in shock.

"I…I'm trying! It's…It seems she's really gone…" he spoke quickly as he continued to do CPR on the little girl.

Rebecca had pulled Nick away from the scene to try and calm him down and get an explanation for what had just happened out of him. As much as she felt like breaking down once again, she held herself together; for him.

Vince stood next to Bonnie, consoling the young woman, while also trying to keep his cool. What had happened? Why hadn't he been there to help?

"I'm sure she'll be fine, Bonnie. We've got to-" Clementine's body convulsing upward stopped him mid sentence, and caused everyone to lean in closer to the girl, hoping Carlos had somehow fixed her.

Her eyes slowly peeled open, and that's when everyone's hearts shattered into a million pieces.

Her once bright amber iris's were now as white as snow, her skin was a deathly pale colour, but even as a walker, she still looked so innocent; like the eleven year old she was.

Carlos pinned her to the ground by holding his hand on her chest and gently pushing down. She was so weak, that was all it took to keep her from biting him.

Her finger lightly clawed at his arm, but she did no damage. It was almost as if she didn't want to hurt him, but couldn't control herself.

Kenny's knuckles turned white since he had been squeezing his hands so tightly. "I'll kill her… I'LL FUCKING KILL HER!" he shouted, marching out of the pen in search of the woman who had murdered the girl he was determined to keep safe.

"Go after him, Vince. Show him where she is…" Bonnie whispered coldly as she sniffled back more tears and joined Rebecca and Nick to break the worse news to them.

Sarita sat next to Carlos and looked down at the girl, inspecting her every wound. Her leg was bleeding again, but that didn't matter anymore. Her neck had clear finger marks that were a much darker blue that the rest of her cold, dead skin.

There was no denying that the little girl had died a brutal death.

Molly tried getting through to Sarah, but she just couldn't.

The teenager was trying her hardest to stay strong like Molly had taught her to be, but she couldn't tear her eyes away from her 'best friend'. They were supposed to be friends forever, not for a week! She should have been there like friends were meant to be, not cowering in the pen, fearing for no one but herself.

"Sarah…" Molly spoke gently, trying to bring Sarah's gaze to her.

Molly wasn't getting anywhere with that, so tried a new approach. She looked over to Nick, who was still a mess on Rebecca's cot. "Nick need you, Sarah." She whispered.

This sentence dragged Sarah's gaze to the red capped man being consoled by Rebecca and Bonnie. With a small nod of her head, she made her way over to Nick and sat beside him, taking Bonnie's place.

"Hi…" was all she could say.

It was all she had to say.

Nick wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close, giving her a side hug as he finally stopped trembling. Molly gave him a small smile, which surprisingly, he was able to return; although it was a little shaky.

Luke fell to his knee's next to the zombified girl. "Clem…" he whispered.

Carlos frowned at him before clearing his throat. "Someone needs to…" he didn't have to finish his sentence. Luke knew what he meant. "I'll do it, if no one else wants to…"

"I'll do it."

Carlos was surprised that Luke was going to be the one to set Clementine free. He didn't go against the southern man, and released his grip on Clementine, allowing her to try sit up.

Luke was quick to take Carlos's place and hold her down.

The doctor led Sarita over to the bed everyone else was crowded around, and helped in cheering up his daughter and Nick.

Luke locked eyes with Clementine. "Why…?" he whispered, "You told me to stay positive… I did what you asked, and this is what happened?!" his voice cracked slightly, but he pulled himself back together.

"At least you're not in pain anymore…" he said, watching as her hat fell off her head and landed on the dirt, while she squirmed and growled under his hand. He picked it up gently and smiled down at it.

"You always loved this hat, ain't that right, Clem?" he whispered, even though he knew she wouldn't respond; at least not the way he hoped she would. "And I never got the whole story behind it, except that your dad gave it to ye…"

"Don't worry, Clem. I'll take good care of it, and I'll make sure everyone hears about the bad-ass young girl who owned it if they ever ask where'd I get it." he made a promise to the dead girl.

He felt like he was crazy for communicating with the dead, but this was his goodbye; the goodbye he was denied before Clementine was dragged away.

At least Nick was okay; or alive anyway.

"I'm gonna miss you, Clementine…" was the last thing Luke could think of saying. The girls struggle was dying out, like she knew; even as a lurker, that she couldn't do much more than move her arms and make foul noises.

Like she knew Luke was going to put an end to her.

He looked over his shoulder at the people on the bed, and sighed quietly. "Bonnie?"

The former guard looked in his direction, awaiting more information.

"Can I borrow a gun?"

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7:<strong>

* * *

><p>Each footstep seemed to echo around the pen louder than the last. Bonnie could feel the eyes trained on her back as she slowly made her way towards Luke, her hand grasping the gun she had been trusted with by Tavia. Even thinking of the woman made Bonnie's face crumple in disgust.<p>

She killed a little girl; a defenceless eleven year old. Tavia could never be forgiven, at least by Bonnie anyway. She had always been cautious around the person second in command while she was with Carver, fearing she would be stabbed in the back if she didn't. Tavia had always been one of those scary people that not only children would avoid, but grown-ups would steer clear of too.

Bonnie's eyes locked with Luke's. His once bright, courageous eyes that she used to be in love with, were now dark and hollow. His exhaustion finally showed on his face after the many sleepless nights he spent on the road. Every feature of his face seemed to age right before her eyes. That wasn't the Luke she knew.

She stopped right next to him and looked down at Clementine, who's growls had quietened down; almost as if she couldn't take in the air to make them louder. That was when, on closer expectation, Bonnie noticed the finger marks on the child's neck. There were also two small puncture holes with a small amount of black blood making them stand out on the young girls pale skin.

Her eyes widened and she turned around to look at the others, still huddled around the one comfortable bed in the pen. Her eyes tried to find Nick's but he seemed to be lost in his own little world, so she turned back to Luke. "Are you sure…" she asked, slowly looking down at the gun in her hands.

Luke opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the gate being yanked back open and Kenny, Vince, Shel, Becca, Wyatt and Russell being thrown inside.

Tavia glared at Kenny who glared back just as coldly before smirking down at Clementine's walker form. "Kid put up quite the fight… Too bad Nick couldn't save her in time, huh?" she asked, directly at Luke. The young man's blank expression didn't change, although momentarily, Bonnie could see something flash in his eyes.

Surprisingly, Kenny didn't physically act out. He simply, and vulgarly, verbally abused the murderer, which ultimately unfazed her. When he figured out he wasn't getting through to her, he slumped his shoulders, avoiding contact with anyone, and made his way to his girlfriend.

"I know you're all planning something, so you'll all be staying out here from now on." The woman said, still smirking down at Luke, waiting for some reaction. When she didn't get one, she released an agitated breath and turned her back to everyone.

Her hand went up to her the side of her head, massaging the place where Nick hit her. "And don't expect any breakfast tomorrow…" she said, leaving the garden, and slamming the gate shut behind her.

Luke's gaze fell back down to Clementine, his eyes not leaving her face while Bonnie remained glued to his side, looking down at him sympathetically.

No one wanted this to happen. No one _meant_ for this to happen. It started to dawn on the pen dwellers, that maybe, they couldn't control who died next... Maybe, things were just going to happen, and there was nothing they could do about it.

This is not what Nick thought, though. He, somewhere in the back of his head, _knew_ he could have saved the terrified girl. He replayed the events in his head and tried to figure out where he had gone wrong. To him, it was his fault she died. No one would be able to stop him from thinking this. He was right next to her, but his weakness cost her life.

Vince was frozen in place too, looking at Clementine with regret. Shel tried to cheer him up, but it was a failed attempt. Instead, she turned to her little sister and led her away from the undead girl.

"Nick?" the confused call of Rebecca turned Bonnie and Luke's attention, as well as everyone else's, to Nick who had started walking towards the scene close to the gate. Instead of the lost, upset look he came back with a while before, his face now showed one of anger and disappointment.

He kneeled next to Luke and looked down at the girl he watched die up in that haunting office. Releasing a shaky breath, Nick put his hands on Clementine's lower torso and felt around for her pockets. "This better have been for something good, Clementine…" he muttered, finally gaining a response from Luke.

Clearing his throat, the brunette man spoke his mind. "What…uh…what happened…?" he asked, his emotions clear to Bonnie and Nick. The way his voice sounded forced and weak, the way his eyes showed nothing but remorse and sorrow.

Nick stopped searching Clementine's jacket as his gaze fell to his knees. "I couldn't save her…I mean, I tried, but…" he explained quietly, closing his eyes and turning his head to the right slightly, away from Luke.

His best friend from twenty years put his hand on his shoulder, in a poor attempt to comfort him. "Was…was it bad?" he asked, his brown eyes glimmering as tears began to form.

Nick couldn't leave Luke wondering how Clementine had met her morbid fate, so after another shaky sigh, he began to recall the events. "I got strapped to a chair. I thought Tavia was gonna kill me; that was why she strapped me down, but I was wrong… She only did it to make sure I couldn't stop her from killing Clem… First, she slashed my cheek; that's when I realised what she was planning, and while she got all up in my face, Clem hit her with a radio. Tavia fell over and Clementine started unbuckling one of my hands. She told me 'the plan has begun' and patted her pocket…" he trailed of as his hand brushed against something in the girl's clothing.

A quiet jingle reached the trio's ears as Nick put his hand in Clementine pocket at last.

"'The plan has begun…?" Bonnie whispered, thinking about what she had told the eleven year old earlier. Her eyes widened when Nick retrieved a whole bunch of keys from the blue coat.

Russell was standing nearby and looked down with a smirk. "Thank god! Tavia took my key before she sent me in here. The kid saved us!" he exclaimed, gaining everyone's attention as he gave a determined smile to Vince still standing next to him.

Nick handed the keys to Bonnie and smiled down at Clementine once more. "It was a stupid plan, kid…" he muttered, wishing he could go back and tell her not to do what she did.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Luke. "What…happened after that?" he asked quietly, closing his eyes as he remained kneeling next to the girl he was determined to keep safe.

Nick thought back to the events once more. "Tavia got back up, after Clem hit her, and grabbed her by the leg. Clem was hurt and fell to the ground. I tried to reach her but she…my hands were still stuck. Tavia broke the cast thing Carlos made for her and strangled her. I…I saw Clem struggling, but failing each attempt to pry her fingers off her neck. Her face went purple, her eyes almost popped out of her head, and all the while, Tavia told her terrible things; like why she was going to kill her…" Nick stopped speaking as he felt the weight of the world on his shoulders, now aware that everyone was listening carefully.

"She let go. Tavia let go of Clem and got up. Even then, I knew Clem was gone, she couldn't breathe, she couldn't talk; Tavia obviously messed her up by squeezing to tightly. I was almost free, I could almost reach her, It felt like I might, maybe be able to reach her and run back here! I couldn't have been more wrong…"

Nick felt like he was back in the moment. Even though he knew what was already going to happen, it still hurt to watch it happen again. Something snapped in his head, finally understanding what Clementine's last words meant.

"Tavia…she…she…she had a taser."

Kenny stepped forward looking angrier than before. "That's why I couldn't get her! She pointed a god damn taser at us and marched us back here!" he explained, avoiding a glance at Clementine since he knew he probably couldn't take it.

"She…leaned back over Clem, taunting her one last time. Clementine knew it was the end. She _knew_ it! After everything she did, she knew that she wasn't getting out of that. She…smiled…at me. She _smiled_ at _me,_ as Tavia pushed the taser into her neck! She gave her fucking life, knowing she was saving the rest of us! SHE DIED BECAUSE OF US!" he cried out in anguish, realising that it was their fault all along.

Luke had broken down by this point, sobbing quietly to himself, avoiding eye contact with anyone. None of the few other guards around Howe's came to investigate the shouting, since they had been informed there would be a bit of fallout in the pen by Tavia.

Sarah approached Nick again, but couldn't say anything since she was so shaken up. Nick turned to look at her angrily. "After everything we put her through, SHE DIED **_FOR_** US!" he was screaming at everyone, not realising Sarah was in his line of fire.

Sarah's eyes widened as she took a step back. Carlos was there to comfort her since Molly was keeping her distance from the raging men near the gate. "Leave her out of it." Carlos said, trying to remain calm, but failing miserably.

Nick shook his head and stood up. He turned to Luke and pulled him up too, not realising that was the only thing keeping the walker Clem at bay. As soon as they were up, Clementine grabbed the person closest to her, which was Sarah.

Carlos tried to pull his daughter back, but the zombified young girl was stronger that everyone thought. Once again, they underestimated her.

Everyone had jumped up and ran to the scene, preparing to fight the undead once more. Before a word could be spoken, however, a gunshot rang in everyone's ears, silencing Clementine at last.

Luke's eyes widened as he pushed Nick away and stared down at the girl with the bullet in her head. His eyes slowly lifted up to see Bonnie, aiming her gun at the corpse with shaky hands.

They locked eyes. Bonnie's full of sympathy and regret, and Luke's with disbelief and misery.

That look was quickly changed as his eyebrows furrowed together and he clenched his fists.

He was supposed to do it.

He was supposed to put an end to it.

He caused it, he knew it, and now, he would have to live with the guilt for the rest of his life.

Bonnie took the one thing that could have saved him.

The one thing that could have helped him get over it.

She blew any chance of _closure _for him.

And now, she was going to pay…

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8:<strong>

* * *

><p>Luke approached Bonnie with a stride in his step. He was breathing heavily, his hands were clenched and his teeth were clenched so tight, everyone could tell even though his mouth was shut. The look in his eyes had her frozen in place.<p>

He was going to kill her.

She knew it.

He lifted his fist to wallop the red head a hard one, but stopped when Rebecca stepped in front of him. "What are you doing?!" she gasped, taking a hold of both his arms, protecting the guard even though she had never particular liked her.

As much as Luke felt the need to hurt Bonnie, he couldn't bring himself to do anything to Rebecca. The tears in his eyes made all his rage more clear to the soon to be mother, and she frowned at him for it. "We can't turn against each other. It's _not_ what Clem died for!"

At the mention of the girl, Luke felt all his anger be replaced with a new wave of sadness and depression. Rebecca noticed his tense hands get weaker and slowly let go of him.

"I…I know you were close to her, but-"

"Don't talk about her!" Luke snapped, ignoring all the cynical looks from everyone else. Rebecca nodded her head, understanding how he felt. No one had mentioned Alvin to her yet, but as soon as they did, she knew she would break. "I'm sorry…" she apologised, remaining planted to the ground between Luke and Bonnie.

Luke's face softened slightly as his eyes scanned Rebecca's face. "I…me too…" he whispered, standing back and crossing his arms protectively. It was almost as if he was placing his hands somewhere that he knew they would have a hard time escaping from if he lost it again.

Nick had also managed to calm down listening to Rebecca protect Bonnie. He faced Sarah and Carlos. "I…I didn't mean to shout." He said, wiping his eyes and giving Sarah a small, forced smile. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist. He coiled his arm around her shoulder and they embraced in a small, but comforting, hug.

Kenny approached Bonnie and put out his hand. "What…?" she asked, confused by his action. Her eyes wandered to her closed fist then back up to Kenny, her mind still fearing for her life.

"Keys…" he said emotionlessly.

Bonnie looked down again at the key's that were still in her hand, along with her gun in the other, and then back up to Kenny. "For what?" she asked, acting as dumb as a doornail.

"To get out of here?!" he stated, losing his patience with the woman. Bonnie handed the keys over slowly, her hands shaking as she dropped the bunch of metal into the older mans rough hand. He quickly clenched his fist around them, she was surprised they didn't break in his grip.

Sarita stayed with Molly away from the rest of the group. "Do you think they'll all make it?" Molly whispered, not realising that the question was not very…helpful to the situation. "What does that mean?" Sarita asked, raising a doubtful eyebrow at Molly.

The blonde haired woman's eyes widened for a second before she shook her head and locked eyes with Sarita. "I mean, how many more do you think will make it out of here? They've got more guards out there, who are armed to the teeth with powerful machinery! What about it we make it out? Do you think a group this big will last long out there?! You saw what just happened. Those farm boys' both turned against us. If it wasn't for Rebecca, Luke might've kill Bonnie!"

Mike and Jane both joined there side, after listening in on their conversation from nearby. "They aren't gonna make it." Jane's sentence pulled both other woman's attention towards her and Mike.

"Where you spying on us?" Sarita asked, not trusting the two new people.

Mike scratched his neck sheepishly. "Yeah…sorry 'bout that. But, we agree with you. This group's falling apart." He said, crossing his arms and staring across the yard to the people around the gate.

Jane locked eyes with Molly. "I thought maybe Clem might make it out there... Her chance is gone now, but maybe that other kid, Sarah, will have a chance. I saw you talking with her, coaxing her to be strong. That's good." She said, respect dripping from her words.

Molly nodded her head, but remained quiet. "Well, we can raise her to be strong and independent, but that's not going to stop the fact that the dead are walking out there, and we can't control who gets bit." Sarita spoke up, finally agreeing with the conversation.

Jane shook her head, recalling events from the past. "Death is inevitable. Eventually, we'll all get bit and die, or worse, be murdered, like Clementine… But we can prolong the inevitable if we're willing to work for it. That's how I've survived this long." She explained, making Mike look at her with wide eyes.

"I've been stuck in here with you for weeks, and only now you start talking 'bout all this shit?!" he gasped, chuckling at the expression on her face.

"Let's go over to them." Sarita suggested, walking away to stand by her partner. Molly, Jane and Mike followed close behind.

* * *

><p>"Are y'all ready? Once we get out, there's no turning back." Kenny spoke clearly, preparing to run for Tavia's office as soon as Russell got the gate opened. Wyatt and Sarita stood next to him, prepared to help him get straight to the main office instead of gathering supplies like everyone else.<p>

"What about him?" Becca asked, pulling Shel's sleeve and pointing to Luke who sat by the fire alone. "He'll come along when he's ready. Besides, he knows the plan. Meet at the supply room in twenty minutes." Shel said, ready to follow Vince, Becca, Carlos, Rebecca and Bonnie.

Carlos turned to look at Molly. "Just keep her close and stay in the supply room, please?!" he asked, not willing to let his daughter get hurt in any trouble they might get into. Molly nodded her head and looked over to Sarah, Mike, and Jane who stood by the gate next to Vince. "Don't worry, I'll protect her." She promised, giving Carlos her word.

He was hesitant to leave his daughter, but knew what had to be done.

Russell managed to get the lock off the gate and stood up, smirking victoriously at the others. "Is everyone ready?" he asked. The survivors nodded their heads, or muttered a 'yes', everyone except Nick.

"I'll stay here with Luke." He said, leaving everyone by the gate and taking a seat next to his friend. No one argued, mostly because they feared saying something that would set either man off again.

Clementine's corpse had been moved to one of the bunks so they could all just pretend she was staying at Howe's to sleep, or something else untrue like that. Luke wanted to bring her with them, but the idea was turned down since the girls corpse would just 'slow them down'.

They really moved her because they didn't want her to be out in the light were they could see her head, or the hole between her eyes.

The gate was thrown open and everyone in the pen, beside Luke and Nick, ran out into the main building. Nick cleared his throat and studied Luke's slouched over figure. He could see the cap in his friend's hands, and knew that he would hold onto it forever.

"You okay, man?" he asked, leaning back in his chair to look as relaxed he could.

Luke continued to stare down at the fabric in his hands. Nick scratched his head nervously as he prepared to speak again. "I…I know it hurts, Luke, but we have to keep moving. Her death scarred me too, man, and I don't think I'll ever get over it, but we're leaving. We've gotta-"

"Stop…" Luke's quiet request made Nick speechless. He didn't protest and shut his mouth.

"I…I…" Luke was at a loss for words, but Nick sat quietly and let his friend think. "I know I acted like I _knew_ she'd be fine, on the trail, but…but I thought I lost her. I ran ahead, looking for help because I thought, _I lost her._ She was a friend, part of the family, a _child_; and a god damn brave one at that… When you lost Pete, I thought you'd have broken down, kinda like me now, heh…" Luke went quiet as Nick sat in shock, still processing his friend's words.

"Do you know how much this hurts?" Nick lifted his head to see Luke's hollow eyes staring right at him, "Do you?"

Nick thought back to when Pete was bitten. He didn't have time to be upset; he was too busy looking after Sarah. His mothers death had effected him greatly, but he got to say goodbye. Luke didn't get that kind of luxury.

Nick wasn't that stupid; he wasn't going to tell Luke this because he knew it would make things worse.

Luke would probably get angry that Nick had a little girl to look after in the first place, so, He shook his head.

Luke sighed as a few gunshots from outside the pen caught his attention.

"Ready to go?" Nick's question hung in the air for a minute, as Luke mentally debated continuing his survivor's journey, or just giving up. Was it worth it, risking his life even though he had nothing to fight for? He would do what Clementine had wanted...

* * *

><p>Kenny didn't care if he was killing innocent people who just got caught on the wrong side of the situation. He was so upset about the eleven year olds death, he needed to let it out, and anger, violence, and irrational thinking were his specialty.<p>

A man wearing a blue shirt and matching striped beanie aimed at him from on top of the shelves outside the pen. Kenny took cover behind a different shelf, quickly checking to see if Sarita had made it to cover too.

Wyatt tried talking to the man, "You don't have to shoot! Join us if you want, we won't hurt you if you put your gun down!" The man declined, stating that he wasn't letting the only community he'd liked in a long time collapse because of a few angry prisoners.

This was enough to set Kenny off.

He jumped out of cover and opened fire on the guard who was out in the open. A flurry of shots entered his torso and he fell from the shelf, landing on the tiled ground with a loud thud.

Kenny emptied the rest of his mag into a woman who was coming down the long isle they were in. One of her bullets had skinned his arm, but he didn't pay much heed to it. He felt the blood run down his arm, onto his hand, but seeing the red liquid only fuelled his hatred of this community more.

Wyatt had a pained expression on his face as he shot at his old co-workers. Sarita didn't take any shots, she was prepared just in case, but not feeling like she could bring herself to do what he partner was doing.

She was still holding onto hope that there was some good left in the world, and she wanted to be part of it.

The trio stormed through the store, opening fire on anything that moved around them.

* * *

><p>Molly, Sarah, Jane and Mike were holding out in the stock room, preparing it for when the rest of the group arrived. So far, no one had come near their post yet, but Jane and Mike were guarding the two only entrances that anything could get in through.<p>

Jane covered the loading bay and Mike covered the door leading into the main building. They could here gunshot echoing around inside, but they knew it was Kenny and that team.

"Rebecca should 'a came with us, I mean, she's pregnant!" Mike had exclaimed, while he paced back and forth at the door.

"Just keep watch and she, Vince and the others should be here soon." Molly said, making sure Sarah was okay. The teen gave her a determined look, one she had seen only once before; while they were climbing that hill to the ski lodge were she hoped her father was.

"We need to go help them." She stated, taking her gun that she had only recently acquired out of her pants.

The blonde haired woman shook her head and faced Jane, who was staring out at an oncoming hoard with wide eyes. "We'll stay here, Sarah. I promised Carlos I'd keep you safe, and that's what I plan on doing. We've already lost Clementine, so you're staying here."

Molly's voice faltered at the mention of the deceased young girl. She and Clementine had never been close, but watching the little girl turn into one of the geeks upset her quite a lot. That was not what Lee would've wanted to happen to her, and being part of the group, she had let them both down.

Part of her wanted to end Tavia's life; to find Kenny and join his squad that were hunting her down, but her stronger will was to keep Sarah alive and unharmed so that's what she was doing.

She noticed the hurt in Sarah's eyes and the distant gaze she had as she stared just past the older girl. "If you wanna help, just go over there and help Jane keep watch. I'll help Mike." The girl with the red rimmed glasses nodded her head, the determined smirk returning as she quickly made her way to Jane's side.

Molly walked over to Mike and took her stand.

They were prepared to win this.

* * *

><p>Rebecca had two backpacks in her arms, both filled to the top with food, and only food.<p>

Bonnie had her gun trained on the openings that they could have been attacked from.

Vince was stuffing bottles of water into Russell's bags as the younger boy looked around anxiously. "Come one, Vince, hurry up!" he said, preparing to zip up the bags and run to the stockroom. He really didn't want to die.

Vince offered him a playful smirk, "You're not wussing out on me, are you Russ?" he asked, watching the African American boy give him a challenging glare, "You're the only wimp 'round here, Vince."

Shel pulled a bag onto her shoulder an approached the two boys. "This isn't the time for your dominant male banter." She pointed out, helping Vince to shove as much things into the bags as they could.

"Hurry up y'all, I don't think we're gonna be alone for much longer…" Bonnie called, seeing Sarita taking cover not far from them. She considered running to help, but stuck to her guard when she heard Rebecca taking a seat nearby and panting tiredly.

Carlos had a lot of medicine packed up and ready to go, so he approached Rebecca and helped her up; letting her lean on him to calm down. "You should have gone to the stockroom. That way, you'd be safe, and Sarah would have someone I trust to look after her." The doctor said, his worries becoming clear to the pregnant woman.

"She's fine, Carlos. And we will be too, just as soon as we get somewhere safe…" she trailed off as a series of gunshots from nearby caused slight panic.

Becca was pacing back and forth next to her sister, losing her patience with the men who were taking so long. "Come on, come on, come on!" she exclaimed, facing them with an annoyed frown on her face.

"We're ready, we're ready." Vince muttered, standing back and sweeping up his bags off the ground before turning to face Bonnie, Rebecca and Carlos. "Everyone knows the way?" he asked, picking up his weapon and preparing to fight if he had to.

He received nervous nods from everyone, and released a determined sigh. "Let's finish this…"

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 9:<strong>

* * *

><p><em>To be continued...<em>


End file.
